Seeing is not always visual.
We see selectively - what we have been taught to see and what interests us.
Learning to See is an interpretation of my study and exploration of the natural world and the journey to see myself as an artist.
A homage to allowing time to slow down to nature’s pace.
A story of solitude, silence, and stillness.
An opportunity to relearn what has been forgotten.
The beginning of a dialogue with the tangled web of life.
Listening to materials and following process.
Allowing myself to be.
My process is varied and broad but ultimately starts with a visit to a favourite place. The stitched works begin as bedsheets and scraps of material. They are eco-dyed and embroidered to reflect life’s patterns and rhythms. The paintings are mixed media on board and delve into our place in nature. The sculptures are salvaged wood offcuts that are painted, burnt, and carved. Relationships are then discovered with found natural elements to delve into sensory adaptation and embodied perception. All the works are landscapes from within place. Memories of the macro and micro with echoes of connections and conversations. When you take the time to really look, to give something your sustained attention, a whole world of surprises opens out to you.
Aly Russell was the recipient of the Lismore Regional Galley Graduate Award (Byron School of Art) in 2020.
Aly Russell, 2021
