Herbal Paintings
A series of artworks using herbs have been occupying me over the past couple of months, painted with the theme of healing and winter in mind. Healing can be a slow process and is often not as straightforward as we would like – complications and relapses can occur. These paintings are about the patience, self care and strength of will required to overcome injury and illness. Herbs have had a long association with healing. I used some herbs from my garden for this painting including fennel, sage, rosemary, lavender, parsley and marjoram.
More details about this artwork can be found in the paintings for sale section of this website.
The Autumn Herbal painting (pictured above) is available as a digital download via my Patreon page. Patreon is a subscription service where artists can offer rewards in return for a monthly or per artwork subscription. Subscriptions start from US$1 per month. It was originally launched by a musician looking for a way to earn income from his work. Currently I offer one artwork per month as a digital download for subscribers. For some time I have been investigating ways to make an income from my artwork that will allow it to be accessible to as many people as possible. This, I believe, is one of the strengths of the digital age.
The small herbal garden picture above is also available on this website as a download, payment is by donation of US$1.
Tropical Plants – Samoa
Over the past couple of months I have also been doing a series of works inspired by a trip to Samoa in early May. Whilst in Samoa I visited the Vailima Botanic gardens at the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum in Apia to collect some foliage for paintings. The tropical plant species were absolutely fascinating and I hope to return in the future to Samoa to continue this series.
Garden at Vailima
Robert Louis Stevenson Museum, Vailima.
In May I visited the Auckland Art Fair and was it was interesting to see the diverse range of artwork displayed. Photographs by Tamara Dean, small artworks by Shelley Norton, Simon Denny’s board games and abstract paintings by Amanda Grunewald all struck a chord with me.
Next month I will take a short break during the school holidays and then continue work on two art award entries for later in the year.
I’d like to wish you all the best for Matariki, which is the Māori New Year celebrated in the middle of winter and marked by the rising of the Pleiades or Seven Sisters star cluster.
Celeste Sterling, June 2018
Celeste Sterling 