Karen Darling - Artist Statement
“Because of my training as an Illustrator, I was very comfortable doing things in a realistic manner. However, at some point I felt I needed to let go of what I felt most comfortable doing and challenge myself further.
Exploring new ways of expressing myself led to a much looser and more abstract feeling in my figurative work, and in turn, led to completely nonobjective abstract paintings.”
Rhoda Payne - Artist Statement
“I am often overcome with sheer exuberance when enjoying the happy brilliance of nature and the unfailing optimism of flowers. Sharing that glorious and comforting experience is what my painting is all about.
I fill my canvases with sumptuous colour, dynamic mark-making and often unexpected compositional forms. Working across various genres I use acrylics and various drawing mediums to combine the real, the abstracted and the imaginary.
I am increasingly drawn to interrupting painted passages on canvas with pure forms of abstraction collaged from my works on paper. This seems to inject a deeper energy reflective of the elusive controlled chaos I seek in life.”