Website: www.brendagaelsmith.com
Facebook: Serendipity Patchwork Quilting
Instagram: @brendagaelsmith
E-mail: brenda@brendagaelsmith.com
Brenda creates textile paintings and sketches made from a rich palette of her hand-dyed fabrics complemented by extensive, textural stitching. Much of her work is inspired by the colour and patterns of the natural world. Using a process of abstraction, she captures the essence of her subjects in simplified form. Working improvisationally, Brenda refines line, shape, colour and texture to evoke a sense of place, express an idea, highlight an issue or elicit an emotional response.
Daily walks are a creative habit integral to Brenda’s studio practice whether she is at home or travelling. By closely observing her surroundings, and taking photos, she has a bountiful inspiration bank that informs her work. Brenda also embraces the serendipity factor. From the dye pot, to the design wall, to the sewing machine, she is always open to the possibility of a glorious accident.
Brenda’s work is exhibited internationally and nationally. Parallel with her studio practice, Brenda is also an independent curator, judge, writer, teacher and mentor.
Integrifolia #7 Emergence
Retail Price: A$2950
Dimensions: 168x87cm (H x W)
Statement: The cone-like fruits of the coastal banksia embody spaces of potentiality as the jostling chambers open up to release their seeds. Each cone is distinctive with their own lenticular patterns and design possibilities.
Exhibitions: The New Quilt 2021
Landlines: Canola Country
Retail Price: A$2200.00
Dimensions: 122x102cm (H x W)
Statement: How uplifting to drive through canola country with vistas of yellow crowned by a wide, open sky at every crest and turn. My attempt to take photos while the car was in motion resulted in a vivid blur punctuated by fence posts and the occasional tree.
Exhibitions: Australian Textile Art Award 2020
Allagai: Suspended
Retail Price: A$180.00
Dimensions: 30x30cm (H x W)
Statement: For much of February 2019 there was a large body of kelp floating just offshore. When the waves break, you can see the dense mass suspended in the surf. It’s a little scratchy to swim over but it’s fun to see the fish congregating on the kelp.
Exhibitions: Petite Miniature Textiles 2020, Wangaratta Art Gallery
Acuity #5: Zemblanity
Retail Price: A$3950
Dimensions: 173x132cm (H x W)
Statement: The COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging to process. It seems like we are constantly recalibrating perceptions to accommodate the new normal. The outlook is suffused with zemblanity. Sheer unrelenting pandemic metrics bring unpleasant, non-surprises both socially and economically. It goes beyond mere spectatorship – our lives have been materially altered.
Exhibitions: The New Quilt 2021; Quilts=Art=Quilts 2021 Schweinfurth Art Center Auburn, New York
Integrifolia #4: Potential
Retail Price: A$1600.00
Dimensions: 109x114cm (H x W)
Statement: The cone-like fruits of the banksia integrifolia contain elliptical chambers that open up to release feathery seeds full of potential. Each cone is the embodiment of possibilities.
Exhibitions: Third China Shenzhen International Quilt Art & Handicrafts Exhibition; Gosford Art Prize 2019 finalist; and 1st prize Small Quilt category Modern Quilt Show Australia 2019.
Vibrance: Tip Toe Through the Tulips
Retail Price: A$1800.00
Dimensions: 90x90cm (H x W)
Statement: In 1983 I was an exchange student to Washington State in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It was a profound, life-changing experience. One adventure was a spring break trip to tulip-growing country. The vista of colour was imprinted on my brain and endures 40 years later.
Exhibitions: AQC Challenge 2023: In Full Bloom.
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