In the style of… Hundertwasser

January 16, 2016January 16, 2016 | Anna Cull

Tree – mixed media, 2016 — Tree – mixed media on watercolour paper, 2016

A tree in the neighbourhood, Christchurch ~ original photograph, 2015

Austrian/New Zealand artist, architect and visionary Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928–2000) was an amazing person and he is one of my favourite artists. His work is colourful and exuberent, bold and quirky, unique and significant.

If you’re not familiar with Hundertwasser, you can visit www.hundertwasser.com to read about him, his art and his philosophy. ‘Blobs grow in beloved gardens’ 1975 and ‘Green town’ 1978 are just two of the beautiful artworks that inspired my tree painting.

I’m not sure if I like ‘Tree’ or not… but I do like knowing that I’ll never look at another tree the same way again!

In the style of… posts are where I use my own photographs as a starting point and draw inspiration from some of the world’s greatest artists and illustrators. It’s not about copying someone else’s art; it’s an experiment in seeing things differently.

The green, green grass (and the red, red hills) of home

October 13, 2014September 21, 2023 | Anna Cull

The green, green grass of home — acrylic on canvas, 305 x 405 mm, 2014. Private collection.

Sergei Bongart’s advice to study nature, exaggerate light and be less inhibited (the quote I posted here on Friday) is more than a little to blame for this painting which I started on Friday morning and finished off on Saturday afternoon. It is based on one of the photographs I took during our DC-3 flight over Christchurch last year.

View of the Port Hills from a DC-3, Christchurch, 2013

Because I wanted to exaggerate the landscape, I decided to go with a fairly adventurous palette (inspired by, among others, the late, great Friedensreich Hundertwasser’s ‘Blobs grow in beloved gardens’ 1975 and ‘Green town’ 1978.

But where did the red hills come from? Well, the bright red is my complementary exaggeration of the dark green trees. And the sheep? That was my way of introducing a calm focal point ― something to suggest that perhaps the hills were not on fire : )

Honouring our past

February 22, 2014February 15, 2014 | Anna Cull

“If we do not honour our past, we lose our future. If we destroy our roots, we cannot grow.” Friedensreich Hundertwasser

Commemorating the 2011 Christchurch earthquake in which 185 people lost their lives. Many homes, businesses and heritage buildings were destroyed. We are still a city in recovery. This is a period in history which will, no doubt, be remembered as both the breaking and the making of our city.