Artist Profile — Lucy Hersey

Lucy Hersey is a painter living in regional Victoria. She works in natural pigments and plant extracts which she grows and forages in her local area.

“I’m big on sustainability - trying to be low impact in my art practice and life. I am as interested in the process of paint makings I am in love with the act of painting. How paint was made throughout history, the significance of colour and pigments in different cultures, and sourcing and using natural pigments to make my own paint. My background in research often leads me down wonderful problem solving, experimental rabbit holes; and at times my studio looks more like a science lab than a painter’s workshop.

Being able to pick up the landscape, and physically work it into my paintings is the essential, connecting element of my practice. Ultimately for me, it is the intrinsic properties of the materials that determine the outcome of each painting, as the quirks of each natural pigment are revealed, guiding and leading me in a way that is collaboration, and a celebration of nature and the landscape.“

About ‘Sky Swimming’ (launching February, 2024):

“These are paintings dedicated to fleeting glimpses of the sublime. Breathtaking moments that catch the heart off guard. Of seeing departed loved ones in sun-rays. Connecting with the spirit of creation in the colour of clouds.”