KNEAD FOR ART: Armidale artist Fiona McDonald is experimenting with malleable graphite for a new series of works. (photo: supplied)
INVITING audiences into her creative process is the plan for an Armidale-based creative to combat the common feelings of uncertainty that come with widespread COVID-19 closures of galleries and cultural institutions.
Artist, author and educator Fiona McDonald works at home in what she describes as her “very messy living room” and a “beautifully clean and organised studio in the Mall”, but with the help of a micro grant from Arts North West she is breaking down the barriers between creator and audience during the pandemic.
“My project aims to rejuvenate my usual feelings of creativity and optimism through drawing,” she told Arts North West this week.
“By creating immersive drawings and posting their progress on social media I hope to dissipate the fear and discomfort of a reduced income, which further exacerbates feelings of isolation and hopelessness.
“My work focuses on inviting viewer participation in the interpretation and meaning of the narrative I produce. The project will move from initial drawings rendered in black and white, expressing loneliness and isolation, and move onto coloured images representing a renewal of creativity and energy for both artist and audience and the inner strength found in that creative process.”
Kneadable graphite
In addition to reaching out to online audiences, Fiona, a graduate of Sydney’s Julian Ashton Art School, plans to develop fresh techniques and use unfamiliar materials while producing this experimental range of works.
“I have been experimenting with some of the new media I have purchased and am planning the finished pieces,” she said.
“I am still working on making some mini videos showing what I am using and how it can be used. The drawings are not as big as I had hoped because I was limited by the paper size available locally, but this is not a problem.
“The pieces I am working on are much looser than my normal work and some of them are abstract. This is liberating, although I feel I am not as in control as I am with known media, such as my usual black pen.
“I have really enjoyed using kneadable graphite and then working into it with an electric eraser.”
Viewers can follow Fiona’s unfolding experiment on her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/123fionadolls and Instagram: @atholglen. Finished work can be viewed on her website: www.fionamcdonaldart.com