MEET THE ARTIST: JESS MERLO

MEET THE ARTIST: JESS MERLO

A Melbourne based painter and sculptor, Jess Merlo’s distinctive works feature organic shapes, natural textures and earthy tones.

Jess has always been interested in art. As a child, she was always keeping herself entertained through arts and crafts and later in her teen years, she would often sit in her room painting and drawing until the early hours of the morning. ‘In my final year of high school, I took art pretty seriously and thought I’d give it a crack at university, as it was the only thing I could see myself doing in the future.’

Jess discovered her style and conceptual interests while studying Fine Art at Monash University. ‘Studying at university was the best thing I did for my art as it pushed me to explore other realms, artists and movements, which helped me practise excessively, expanding my work to organic abstraction and sculpture.’ Surprisingly, Jess never liked sculpture until she undertook a compulsory sculpture unit as part of her studies. She found so much joy in it that she decided to adopt sculpture as a key part of her practice. Since graduating in 2017, Jess and her work has gone from strength to strength and she is busy with commissions, fairs and exhibitions both in Australia and internationally.

Jess works from her garage studio in the North West of Melbourne. She aims to keep the studio an inspiring space, full of art books, sketchbooks, plants, rocks and other found objects that hold unusual shapes. ‘I make all my work in the warm, sunlit garage, typically (and stupidly) barefoot, blasting music. A long day in the studio for me requires a great playlist, coffee, snacks and sound-cancelling headphones to keep me in the zone.’

Natural environments typically inspire the organic forms in Jess’ paintings and sculptures, including landscapes, vegetation and rock formations that have been eroded and organically shaped by the ocean. She also finds inspiration from visiting countless galleries, reading books and researching other artists who challenge conventional art boundaries. ‘Artists like Hans Arp, Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore, Matisse and Picasso have always been a big inspiration for my paintings in particular. In addition to these amazing artists, I also find the works of Lucio Fontana and Robert Ryman breathtaking.’

When in the process of creating a painting, Jess usually starts by drawing hundreds of shapes and later matches multiple forms together on scrap paper to find the composition that works. When she sculpts, however, she typically has a very loose plan, as she finds the forms often make up their own mind as she works.

Through her art, Jess aims to challenge conventional artistic constructs and encourage a thought-provoking experience for the audience. She also wants to challenge herself through her art, by learning new skills and techniques and working with new materials.

She describes her current work as an exploration of artistic boundaries, ignoring the distinctive line that separates painting from sculpture. ‘Through a lot of experimentation, I am trying to form a hybrid that blurs the line of typical artistic specialisations. By adding textural layers to my paintings and creating works that don’t quite fit in either painting or sculpture constructs, they continue to question conventional artistic rules.’
 
See our range of uber cool Jess Merlo works here!

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MEET THE ARTIST: CATE MADDY

MEET THE ARTIST: CATE MADDY

 

 

Cate Maddy’s Melbourne home studio is surrounded by bushland, clearly inspiring her stunning, layered artworks. Her studio is full of the things that inspire her: vases of native flowers, collections of pebbles, bird nests, drift wood, broken wood and any object that takes her fancy. “I couldn’t live without my collections. My computer of course is also a necessity as well as my phone to take photos of plants as I am walking the parks and bushland.”


Cate has always been interested in art; her whole family are creative in different ways and were brought up to be curious about the world. “I can remember creating a collage of a rooster in Grade 1 with a huge tail made out of hundreds of tiny pieces of paper, when most of the kids probably used about 5 pieces of paper. I remember the satisfaction I felt on completing that even now.”


Cate studied Graphic Art and worked in Advertising for 12 years before going back to study Visual Art at TAFE, followed by a Fine Art Degree at RMIT. While at university, she won the Siemens Award -  a travel scholarship which she used to go on the RMIT Art Tour to New York. ‘That was certainly a highlight and very exciting to go to a city literally dripping with Art.’ Last year, Cate was a finalist in the Kennedy Prize in Adelaide and spent a month studying painting in Venice. She has now exhibited in every major city in Australia, along with several Regional galleries, exhibited in London and sold work internationally. “I think a big highlight for me has been connecting with people on Instagram from all over the world through our art, our pets or whatever is interesting to us. I have been surprised and humbled by that.”


Cate starts a work in acrylic paint, then builds up the layers with oil paint, aiming to create a sense of movement and variations of texture. When discussing her inspirations, Cate describes colour as her passion; with its limitless variations, it is always a source of inspiration for her. “I am inspired by the natural world, especially native flora at the moment. I love Abstract Expressionism and colour work, abstraction and Naïve painting. I love house plants and Indian rugs and paper lanterns – anything bohemian really. Oh, and my kittens of course! They are always getting in the way and making me laugh in the studio.”


Cate describes the underlying theme of ‘relationships’ that run through her works. “My paintings are actually about relationships, believe it or not. We have relationships with everything in this world, so sometimes I might be talking about the relationship we have to nature or maybe a relationship with a person that could be proving a joy or problematic. I like the term ‘expressionism’ because it talks to the way we express ourselves. I express myself through my art in a physical way with big brushstrokes, bold colour, harsh areas and soft moments. My work is emotional and tumultuous like life itself.”
 
See Forman’s collection of stunning Cate Maddy works here!

 

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MEET THE ARTIST: SILVIA ROTUNDO

MEET THE ARTIST: SILVIA ROTUNDO

Silvia works from her home studio in Yarraville, Melbourne. With doors leading out to the garden and a flood of natural light, the studio is a space where Silvia is surrounded by all the things she loves: art from other artists, textiles and objects that are special to her.

Painting and drawing since she was a young child, Silvia remembers her mother teaching her to draw. “She loves flowers and I guess that’s where I got my love of flowers also. It was the first thing she taught me to draw. I think I was around five at the time and I recall it so clearly. I love this memory.”

Silvia’s journey to working as a full-time artist has been a long one. After studying interior decorating and design, she pursued a career in the field for over 27 years. “I would incorporate my artwork into peoples’ homes and spaces in the form of murals and commissioned canvases. I didn’t have much time to paint with my interior decorating work, so it was only occasionally I could provide my own work to clients.” When Silvia made the bold decision to paint full time, she realised it was something she had been longing to do for a long time. “Painting makes me fully present. It’s meditative, calming and joyful. I feel alive when I have that brush in my hand.” Silvia held her first solo show after 18 months of painting full time, completely selling out on opening night.

Silvia draws her inspiration from many sources. With a love of colour, she is particularly interested in the colours found in nature, fashion, old movies, design and textiles of the 50s and 60s, Japanese textiles and the works of people such as Orla Kiely and Marimekko. “I am inspired by handmade items and artisans. I love pieces that have meaning and a story. I do a lot of research along with visiting galleries; Heide gallery is my favourite!”

Silvia has immersed herself in creative experiences, always sketching, painting and taking short courses in metal work, folk art painting, knitting and “anything creative”. Her painting and drawing skills developed through great teachers at high school, art mentors and painting and drawing classes she attended since moving to the West. “In particular, a chap named Darien Pullen, who runs art classes in Melbourne’s West. He’s an extraordinary artist and encouraged my stills.”

Silvia’s love of colour is clear to see through her stunning still life works. Using acrylics, impasto and ink, she builds her work up in layers. “I use washes and make a lot of stencils to create my work. It’s tedious and takes a lot of time. I plan all my work with sketches and colours and sometimes a mood board.”

“I create art with all my heart and soul. There’s a little piece of me, my energy, in all my work. I hope to bring joy and beauty into people’s homes and lives through my work.” 

 

See Forman’s range of beautiful Silvia Rotundo works here!

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MEET THE ARTIST: CHLOE PLANINSEK

MEET THE ARTIST: CHLOE PLANINSEK

 



 

 

 

Inspired by nature's landscapes and ever-changing cloud formations, Chloe Planinsek creates harmonious and fluid abstract paintings that bring a sense of calm and happiness to a room.

While Chloe studied art during her VCE years, painting was not a focus for her at the time. When she did begin to paint, it was for her own home. As she began to paint more, she enjoyed the process of creating, wearing gloves and painting with her hands while listening to beautiful ethereal music. ‘As a lot of my artwork was inspired by the clouds above, I felt it was a nice time for me to connect to the world above and beyond us.’ It was an organic way for Chloe to explore painting, allowing her to feel connected to the canvas and give the painting a certain movement that she loved. As her work evolved, she wanted to try different styles and began to use brushes, opting for large brushes and gestural strokes. 

From 2010 Chloe started painting commercially and by 2012 she was painting full time. As she describes, it was a slow and expensive process. 'I used to exhibit at the Decoration & Design interior trade fairs in Melbourne and Sydney. This was back when there would only be one other artist exhibiting there! It was a great way to meet industry professionals though, and I still work with many of them today, which is really nice.' Chloe now paints, prints and supplies her own designs to the architectural and interior design industry throughout Australia. She has painted countless commissions based on her sold pieces, adapting the colours to suit her clients’ needs.

Chloe loves to paint at home. ‘When we built our house, we did have a designated room for a studio, however I ended up turning it into a formal living room (which we never use, but like to look at!).’ Instead, Chloe paints in the family area of her house, wheeling her supplies in on a trolley and putting it away afterwards. Although unconventional for an artist, the space gives Chloe a flood of natural light and the ability to paint away while her husband watches TV in the same space. 

Clouds have been the biggest inspiration for Chloe’s work as they are soft, gentle and beautiful to look at and she loves the feeling of calm they bring. A dash of metallic gold is often featured in Chloe’s paintings as she loves the ‘touch of magic’ and life it gives the work. Recently, Chloe’s works have been inspired by architecture and nature and are more bold and abstract. These large artworks sit comfortably in, and bring impact to, an architectural home or space.

Chloe’s career highlights have been diverse and as she describes, ‘It all depends on how we measure a highlight. I think if something makes me feel extra happy, then it is a highlight.’ Early on, highlights for Chloe included features in magazines and commissions from large property developing companies. Now, the everyday happiness that her work brings is the greatest reward. 

She loves working closely with clients through the commission process. Working with Benjamin’s Kitchen (the Alphington pan-Asian restaurant) was one such project and was a definite highlight for Chloe. The soft cloud-inspired mural covering the restaurant walls, originally commissioned by Alexandar Pollock Interiors, was shortlisted for a design award. After finishing the main restaurant downstairs, the owners commissioned Chloe to paint both private rooms upstairs. ‘Meeting and working with the owners has been so lovely. They are so hospitable, and their Asian fusion food is incredible, and worth the drive!’

Chloe also loves working with interesting and creative people in the interior world.  ‘Nicole of Rent Fine Art is so great to work with and we are in touch nearly daily! She lets me paint freely to fit her brief, so it is nice to have that trust with her and the freedom for my painting. Meeting Forman’s Kara and Nick was a big highlight. I absolutely love working with them and feel they bring so much joy to so many people! Having their energy in my weekly life is so much fun; they feel like my extended family.’

 

Check out our beautiful range of Chloe’s paintings here!

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"White Swan" - A Paper Cutting Masterpiece

"White Swan" - A Paper Cutting Masterpiece

"White Swan" - an original artwork by the paper cutting maestros of Melbourne Mondocherry, box framed by us in Tasmanian oak and styled to perfection by Richard Hall & Son.

Each feather in this glorious creation is handcut, individually painted and embellished and painstakingly placed into position by Clare & Joy of www.mondocherry.com.au

We have to physically detach Clare from each artwork when we are about to frame it.

Photo credit goes to www.gemmola.com.

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