artexpress? me? not likely.

Hi, my name is Tess, and I am extremely honoured to have my work chosen to be part of ArtExpress 09.

For the last three years I have made the day trip down from Camden Haven High on the Mid-North Coast, to the Gallery of NSW's ArtExpress exhibition with my Visual art classmates. Intimidation was the key emotion of these trips, feeling like a country hick as we clambered out of the minibus and queued to get a glimpse of the epitome of high school art. I remember feeling, 'I want that, I want my work in the gallery of NSW, I want my efforts to be recognised...'

I am the biggest perfectionist, and this has worked for me during my HSC. So producing an artwork that I was happy with, staying true to my own self, was the most important thing. Now, I'm having trouble imagining my work on the wall of the gallery. I'm sure when it comes to the opening and I see mine I still won't understand how it got there...

My artwork is entitled "The Nature of Us".

'Nature':
a) encompassing the physical, natural environment. Mother nature. etc.
b) Human nature.

'Us':
a) Humanity in general, the individuals who are single spokes in a huge wheel of fortunes. Our individual strengths, flaws, emotions, minds and morals that make us different, yet the same, the likenesses that bind and connect us.
b) Those close to me: family; through the ties of blood, but also the family I could choose; my friends.


So I guess my artwork in essence conveys relationships between people and people, people and the environment, people and their past.


I haven't thought this much since I graduated from school, so I may write more later before my brain implodes (:


Look forward to meeting you all at the opening!

Tess