Artwork Details
- Artist
- Chantelle Stewart
- Title
- Ash Country
- Medium
- Acrylic and mixed media on canvas
- Dimensions
- 145 × 125 cm
This work began outdoors in the bushland of Allambie Heights on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, where the first marks were made using charcoal gathered from the ground following a recent back-burn. Working directly within the landscape, the surface developed through loose gestures, smoke-darkened marks and earthy tones responding to the terrain around it. The painting was later returned to the studio, where further layers of acrylic and mixed media were built slowly over time. Moving between field and studio allowed the work to shift away from direct observation, becoming less about a specific location and more about the physical memory of land. Darkened charcoals and mineral pigments sit against softer colours. As with much of Chantelle’s landscape practice, the work emerged through an intuitive process of building, scraping and reworking the surface, allowing fragments of terrain and atmosphere to gradually surface.
About the Artist
Award-winning artist Chantelle Stewart is based in Sydney, living and working on the Northern Beaches. Winner of The Next Big Thing Art Prize in 2024, her work is inspired by the innocence and joy of childhood, capturing intimate moments filled with wonder and play. Her paintings are a tribute to growing up in suburbia—running under sprinklers, playing backyard cricket, and riding bikes. Raised in a red brick house in a quiet cul-de-sac with her older brother, a cattle dog named Jessie, and a Hills Hoist in the backyard, Chantelle draws from these memories to create art that evokes the warmth and freedom of youth. Her work invites viewers to reconnect with a simpler time, where joy was found in everyday moments. Chantelle explores the contrast between light and shadow, working in oil to reflect the distinctive glow of the Australian sun. Her paintings transport the viewer to familiar scenes, stirring a sense of nostalgia and belonging. Chantelle’s practice continues to explore the relationship between self and environment, celebrating the beauty in everyday life and the meaningful connections formed through shared experience.
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