THE GENTLE ART OF
RosieWeiss
By Melissa Walsh Photos Yanni
T
he Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery’s National Works on Paper was established in 1998 and incorporated the former Spring Festival of Drawing and the Prints Acquisitive which began in 1973.
From over 1,000 entries, 63 artists have been shortlisted for the 2018 National Works on Paper acquisition, one of which is Capel Sound artist Rosie Weiss. Peninsula Essence talks to Rosie about her love of art, the environment and what inspires her. Rosie Weiss is an artist who examines the relationship we share with the natural world and finds eroded plant fragments teetering on the edge of human activity. Over time Rosie has documented dramatic changes to the shape and structure of
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the coastline in Port Phillip Bay, eroding some parts and plants beyond recognition. “I have always been intrigued with nature and seeing the environment around me since I was a child. My dad was a painter and studied botany. He would take me out on long walks where he would point out all the plant life and how marvellous nature is. We were always looking at the interconnectedness in things,” says the artist who finds inspiration in nature everywhere. “Becoming an artist was something that naturally evolved, growing up with a father who painted and a mother who was a graphic designer. I remember when I was 12 going into a competition for drawing and winning, and that was the first time I thought perhaps I could be an artist.”