INTERVIEW
/GABRIELLE JONES Gabrielle Jones is an Australian artist who is just beginning an international career, having her return exhibition in Umbria, Italy in June this year, with the majority of the first exhibition making its way to New York buyers. Her oil paintings serve as documentation of the performative act of painting, capturing the rhythm of movement; and thoughts, memories and responses to experiences as they play out in real time in front of the canvas. We had a conversation with Gabrielle where she touches on various topics of her art. What is it like to live in the heart of the majestic Blue Mountains in NSW? I live in the upper Blue Mountains which has a great creative community of artists, musicians, filmmakers, animators, jewellers, craftspeople, and restaurateurs and a community that revels in them. And that’s the best thing about living here.
spaces of the Central West easily for a recharge. And of course, there’s the cafes, galleries and restaurants. It’s a pretty good lifestyle. How has that influenced your work? The move to the mountains has changed my work enormously, but not in the ways I expected. I used to paint abstract landscapes but, as I was an inner city artist, something about that didn’t feel authentic. Honesty in art is important to me, so I moved here thinking that the landscape would inspire and motivate me and help
Having support and an understanding of what I do allows me to remove defences and stretch myself artistically. It’s also great to be able to access the nature of the mountains and the wide open 26