Rebecca Kate, Abstract Botanical Artist, Geelong

Tell us about yourself and what you do?

I'm Beck or otherwise known as rebecca kate (my artist brand name) and I love to create! I'm primarily an abstract botanical artist but have recently started (and loving) delving into collage and mixed media art. I'm also a mum of two girls Esme (6) and Willow (4) who love creating with me.

Have you always had an interest in creating art?

Yep! ha ha... I used to remember drawing all the time when I was a kid.

What inspired you to begin painting? 

I completed my Bachelor of Fine Arts way back in 2004 but didn't pursue my painting until Esme was born.... I felt a little bored as a stay-at-home-mum so picked up the paint brush as a creative outlet and haven't looked back.

What kind of flower brings you the most joy?

Roses are my all time fave... they are so elegant and pretty and smell divine!! But I also love how their thorns give them an edge and make them tough haha.

What’s your creative process?

My process for my abstract botanicals starts with deciding on the colour palette, then the first layers are very very free and loose.... I use a lot of fluid flow-y paint and am not afraid to make a mess. The background has a lot of layers so I need to wait for them to dry in between each layer and I am mainly just building up the colours with different techniques like using a spatula and thick messy brush strokes. The top layers are made up of the floral shapes and refined lines in different colours.

Are there any other artists that inspire you?

So many... I absolutely love Annie Everingham and her work, my art bestie Casey Burrill is a constant inspiration, Heather Day and Blacklist to name just a few,

what’s the most memorable event of your career?

I think my most memorable event and one that I was most proud of is at the end of my Bachelor Degree we had a graduation exhibition and I created three mixed media self portraits. When we arrived at opening night I was super surprised to find out that all three sold before the exhibition had even opened. 

any music, artists, books, that you’re loving right now?

I've just started to read Glennon Doyle's Untamed and absolutely loving it.

Favourite weekend activity? 

Lighting the chiminea out in the backyard with a glass of red and book while the girls are playing.

How has COVID affected the art industry, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this? 

Personally I don't think it has been affected in a negative way, if anything I feel because we are home all the time we are drawn to things that bring joy, so more art is being purchased and I feel so grateful that local artists are being so supported during this time.

Top tip for surviving lockdown? 

Take one day at a time.

You can find more of Beck’s work here:

Instagram

Website

TikTok - @rebeccakateartist

Pinterest - rebeccakate

Lacie RZ Porta, Flower Preservation Artist, Framed Florals, New York

Tell us about yourself and what you do?

Hi! I'm Lacie, I'm a flower preservation artist based in Brooklyn, New York! Being a flower preservation artist means I press flowers the old school way in a flower press, and frame them in handcrafted wooden frames! I love being able to save memorable flowers and preserve sweet and significant moments in time through flower pressing and framing!

Have you always had an interest in art and pressing flowers?

I definitely have! Ever since I was little I remember wanting to be an artist, author, or a book illustrator. All through elementary, middle, and high school I was always very creative and loved drawing, painting, ceramics, and anything art focused! I didn't think flower pressing would become my medium of choice, but when cleaning out some boxes from my childhood bedroom I recently found an old notebook that had pressed flowers and petals in it! So whether I knew it or not then, it would be the artistic medium that has had the biggest impact on my life!

What inspired you to begin Framed Florals?

It wasn't until a year after my wedding that I really felt super inspired to start Framed Florals. I did have the initial spark after my wedding, when my husband and I were taking our flowers home and we weren't sure what to do with them. I felt inspired to press them, and frame them, and I loved the way it turned out. A year later, I came back to my original frame and knew that there was just something there. I wasn't able to find an artist working in a minimal way with pressed flowers so I had the idea to launch Framed Florals! If I was searching for something that didn't exist, I was sure there were other people who would love it too!

What kind of flower brings you the most joy?

SO many! I think the flowers that bring me the most joy are the ones I have my own special memories associated with. Dogwood flowers are a personal fave because they remind me of spring days in Brooklyn, Coral charm peonies make me so happy because they are just so bright and happy, and Astrantia flowers make me SO happy because they remind me of the first big project I got hired to do with Framed Florals!

What’s your creative process?

My creative process starts from the pressing process. Taking the arrangements, centerpieces, and flowers apart and separating into like elements and colors helps me envision how the final frame will come together. When dried and pressed I love setting everything out and picking the stems that initially stand out to me based on color, shape, and size. From there, tweezers in hand I'm moving flowers around, changing layouts, and envisioning the original flowers and their vibe, and trying to capture that in the composition. 

Are there any other artists that you're loving right now?

My favorite flower artist is my friend Ron Nicole! Her work is so ethereal and such a beautiful take on flower preservation. We both launched our businesses around the same time and bonded over our shared love of florals and preservation! Her flower fossils and molds are so inspiring and a joy to see pop up on my Instagram!

Tell us about the most memorable event you can think of in your career?

The most memorable event that instantly pops into my head was recording a video for Buzzfeed! I brought my collection of pressed flowers to the Buzzfeed studio and on camera shared my story, inspiration for starting, and a lot of behind the scenes for flower preservation! It was such a cool experience to be able to chat flowers and arrange pressed flowers on camera and see the video come together in real life!

Any music, art, books, that you’re just generally enjoying or drawing inspiration from?

I love it ALL! I find the most inspiration from artists who work in mediums other than flowers. I love compiling a playlist of songs in a playlist every season that I'm really info, and I play that on loop all month long. The songs are always random and vary from Built to Spill, Leon Bridges, Talking Heads, to Queen, Cautious Clay, and Blood Orange. I've been reading a ton and my favorite book I read this month was "The Poet X" by Elizabeth Acevedo. It's written in verse which is so beautiful to read, and I couldn't put it down once I picked it up!

Favourite weekend activity?

Visiting an art museum followed by a drink at a favorite brewery!

How has COVID affected the art industry, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this?

COVID has hit every industry hard, and the art industry is no different. I think for a while things came to a complete halt, I know personally I felt icky promoting my work knowing there was so much pain and hurt going on in the world. Also any artists who work in the events world, with in person events stopping that hurt them a lot. It was really hard all around. But I think things are slowly switching and the arts industry is picking back up in a way because with everyone spending more time at home, they're realizing the art they display and what hangs on their walls is so important. Supporting small makers is more important than ever and I hope that slow switch is something that continues. We need art, creativity, and more beauty in the world now more than ever!

Top tips for surviving lockdown?

Lean into the way you're feeling that day! At first I was getting so down on myself for having really hard and sad days when I accomplished little to nothing. The kinder I am to myself and lean into those hard days, the better I feel in the end. Life outside of work has been really fulfilling, I've been doing community cleanups in my neighborhood, organizing with a new "free food fridge" in my community, and mentoring high school students. And those things really do bring me SO much joy, and so if I'm having a hard day and don't accomplish much I remember all the other things that make me happy and lean into that!

You can find more of lacie’s work here:

Instagram

Website