In this blog, we will take a closer look at some amazing New Zealand Artists and their favourite mediums. From alcohol inks to linocut printing, these artists share their unique perspectives on the creative process and their chosen medium. Artists explore a plethora of diverse art mediums, as highlighted in this comprehensive guide on different art mediums here.
Bianca Laing: Exploring Alcohol Inks
Bianca Laing is a Wellington-based artist who is currently exploring alcohol inks. Her work ranges from simplistic line drawings to multi-layered portraits with patterns, bold lines, and colours. For Bianca, alcohol inks are the perfect medium to warm up her creative juices for the day. "I love that you can work quickly, but the inks often have a mind of their own, so you never quite know how things are going to turn out," she says. "If I am working on a bigger project, I like to start by doing one of these types of works as they're like a fun little warm-up into my creating for the day!"
Cara Rose: Capturing Memories with Watercolours
Cara Rose, a contemporary artist based in Wellington, finds artistic inspiration in the community and nature around her. "I love working with watercolours," she says. Her medium of choice is watercolours, which she describes as quick-drying and easy to transport. "I have a small watercolour set that I bring with me almost everywhere I go so that I can record memories with my paintbrush," Cara says. She enjoys the freedom that watercolours offer, allowing the colour to follow the water wherever it goes on the page.
Dani Hedges Art: Building with Acrylics
Danielle Hedges, a contemporary New Zealand artist from sunny Motueka, has been a fan of acrylics for a long time. She enjoys bringing brightness to her paintings and experimenting with diverse topics. Acrylics are very buildable and can be used in many different ways, making them Dani's favourite medium. "My usual style involves a lot of thin layers to create depth. However, I also experiment with thicker, more expressive strokes as I love the feel," she says. She often mixes acrylics with other mediums such as acrylic inks, spray paint, and pastels to create fun and body. "My canvases range from paper and smooth card to wood, canvas and walls. I like the variety and the challenge; each feels different."
Dickie Artist: Detailing with Ink Pens and Watercolours
Dickie Artist, a contemporary Hibiscus Coast artist obsessed with octopuses, loves to use both ink pens and watercolours in her creations. She finds the detail achievable with fine-line pens unforgiving but enjoys the challenge they provide. In contrast, watercolours give her images a lovely free quality. I love the detail you can achieve with fine-line pens, they are unforgiving, and I enjoy that challenge. Watercolour is the perfect opposite of this. It flows and does its own thing. It is less controllable. It gives a lovely free quality to images. I love the contrast between these two mediums, the intricate details and the maximum colour and flow,” she says.
Nester Prints: Simplifying with Linocut Printing
Esther Remnant also known as Nester Prints, is a printmaker and illustrator from Nelson, New Zealand. She loves to use linocut printing in her designs. "The reason I love linocut prints in design is that they are bold and graphic, with hard lines, flat areas of colour, and high contrast between the substrate and ink," she says. The carving process itself adds a certain element of style and simplicity to her designs. With linocut printing, there's no room for error, so you need to be confident and decisive with your lines.
Olivia Bezett: Layering Colours with Coloured Pencils
Olivia Bezett, an Auckland artist, fell in love with coloured pencils as a medium when she received her first set from her dad as a Christmas gift in 2014. "I adore the way you can layer the colours to achieve delicate and fluffy effects, which makes coloured pencils such an underrated medium," she says. Olivia's work often features animals and nature, with a strong focus on capturing the intricate details and textures of her subjects. She finds coloured pencils to be a versatile medium that allows her to create both realistic and fantastical illustrations.
Celebrating the Diverse Creativity of New Zealand Artists: Exploring Mediums, Styles, and Boundaries
While each of these New Zealand Artists uses a different medium to create their work, they all share a love for the creative process and a desire to capture the beauty and uniqueness of the world around them.
Bianca, Cara, Dani, Dickie, and Esther all experiment with their art and enjoy pushing the boundaries of their respective mediums. Olivia Bezett, another artist who shares these passions, works primarily with coloured pencils to achieve delicate and fluffy effects through layering colours. Like the other artists, Olivia is experimental with her art, constantly pushing the boundaries of her chosen medium. Each artist has their own unique style and approach to their art, making their work unique and distinguishable from one another. Bianca explores the unpredictability of alcohol inks, while Cara captures memories with the softness and fluidity of watercolours. Dani enjoys the versatility of acrylics, while Dickie finds the contrast between ink pens and watercolours to be invigorating, and Esther simplifies designs into bold linocut prints. These differences in style and approach make each New Zealand Artists’ work unique and distinguishable from one another. For more information on the arts in New Zealand and to discover other talented artists, visit The Arts Foundation's website.
In conclusion, while these New Zealand Artists may use different mediums, they all share a passion for creating art and a desire to express their unique perspectives. Their similarities lie in their love for experimentation and pushing boundaries, while their differences are found in their individual styles and approaches to their chosen mediums.
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