Artist: Bronwyn Brenton
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Bronwyn Brenton and Teresa Cristina Cowley have a couple of things in common: they have a passion for art and both have fallen in love with Bellingen. The girls' latest project is exhibiting artworks at the Federal Hotel in Bellingen. These busy ladies juggle full-time jobs and young
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here are you from? I was born in Sydney in 1974 and spent the first 9 years of my life in Mount Colah, when the family moved to the Upper Macleay Valley for a tree change. In 1993 I moved to Newcastle to study Visual Arts at the University of Newcastle … then Sydney for a year … Adelaide for 3 … Melbourne for 4 years, before moving to beautiful Bellingen. What do you love about living in Bellingen? I remember living in Melbourne and making the long journey by car to visit my sister in Bellingen at Christmas time in 2002. The air was thick with humidity, we were surrounded by lush plants and the orchestral sounds of crickets and frogs provided such a contrast to what I had become used to whilst living in Melbourne. Walking down the main street of Bellingen brought together a sense of community, creativity and the comforts of metropolitan life; I was in a regional town that fed the soul. The magic of the Promised Land and beaches only cemented in my mind that
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this would one day become my home and in 2004 with a 4 month old baby girl, this became a reality. I am reminded each afternoon as I drive towards Old Man Dreaming after working in Coffs Harbor that I live in a very special part of the world, and there is no other place I would rather bring up my children. Describe your artistic style … My style has developed over the years through experimenting with different mediums and techniques. Currently I am exploring colours and patterns through a layering process. My latest fascination is leaves and branches and what happens when an outlined branch defines a space, allowing patterned imagery to push through. Check out my website for my previous works at www.bronwynbrenton.com Where does your passion for art derive? My parents surrounded us with inspiration. Much of my exposure to creativity as a young one was that of a musical nature. I have fond memories of going to Folk Festivals around NSW, some of which my parents played at. We were encouraged to explore and be adventurous and were not insulated from the outside world. I took up violin when I was
families. Here is their story …
10 and unfortunately wasn’t equipped with a musical gene, so for the sake of everyone’s sanity (including the dogs) my parents traded the violin for some art materials, and then I became lost in this whole other world. What painting techniques do you use? At the moment I am using acrylics, and art pens for my canvases and watercolour and art pens for works on paper. Some of my canvases have many layers of paint with different patterns pushing through each layer; the top layer is an outline of branches and leaves, with the negative areas of the artwork filled in with art pen. What are you looking forward to most about your exhibition? Catching up with friends! But seriously, having a deadline is the best way to churn out some quality work and having the opportunity to showcase what I have been developing is something that I’m excited about. Why did you decide to exhibit together? Teresa invited me to be part of the exhibition, and I felt honoured that she considered me. Thanks Bronwyn.