James Brown
“Undergrowth at
Balgal Beach”, 2024
Watercolour on
heavy wove paper
Size: (sheet)
42 x 29.7 cm; (image borderline) 21 x 21 cm.
Sitting in our
motel room at Balgal Beach in the Northern Beaches district of Townsville, I was
in a personal heaven looking at the rich greens of dense new growth flourishing
outside after two weeks of almost unrelenting rain. Isabelle and I needed this
special time away. We only spent a few days on our beach retreat from our daily
routines, but it was long enough. I
truly enjoyed the easy time to simply make watercolours surrounded with the mossy
earth smells of the forest floor.
The subject of
this watercolour—a tight mesh of young shoots adorned with large, elongated
leaves—captivated me. It offered an opportunity to delve into the intricacies
of nature, examining how each leaf positioned itself in front of or behind its
neighbours, as they sparkled like jewels in the filtered light. This subject was
perfect and invited me to explore the complex matrix of foliage and to sense
the seemingly impenetrable depth of the undergrowth.
Although this
painting captures only a small fragment of a much larger scene, I am pleased
with the outcome. To my eyes, this intimate section of interlocking leaves,
framed by an intricate array of angles and verticals, epitomises how I perceive
undergrowth: a jewel box, structured by an underlying framework holding
everything together.
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