My body of work investigates society’s attempts to force conformity on individuals who are seen as different, making them fit ideals of ‘normality’. The work is performed in a desolate place, representing how people are separated from their identity as society pushes normality upon them with ‘brushstrokes of compliance’. The work begins with each coloured figure painting the white figure peacefully, with unified brushstrokes, but as it progresses they start competing for their personal colour to be dominant, fighting for their personal ideals of what they deem 'normal'. The white figure escapes, stating that ‘true beauty lies in diversity’.

My body of work investigates ideas and feelings that we all understand: anxiety about life, fear of rejection, unexplainable sadness. I represent the figures in my work hiding their faces as they navigate life in this complex postmodern world. In placing these figures into both natural and manufactured environments I communicate our isolation as individuals and the escalating prevalence of mental health issues in our society. Rust paint applied to the figures conveys the disintegration and decay of people’s mental health. Through my work, I encourage the audience to reflect on their mental health and the mental health of others.

Tempus combines science fiction with dystopian and fantasy worlds to represent a series of characters in various settings through time. The drawings in my body of work are displayed like the pages of a graphic novel, but the pages do not necessarily connect to create a chronological story where each scene leads into the next one. In using the format of a wordless comic book, my intention is that the audience decides the order of events and which pages are connected or disconnected, which scene is intertwined with which.

Contemporary society pushes us to succeed in both hedonism and ascetism; to achieve materially as well as being spiritually present. However, these states undermine each other, causing conflict. In my body of work the cave scenes investigate ascetism, with the erasure of desire allowing us to gain respite in the moment and find meaning in embracing the present. In contrast, the hedonistic scenes appropriate historical works, referencing how historic artmaking stresses the importance of desire and achievement to make meaning. My intention was to challenge the audience to consider both past and future, and the dissonance this causes for us.

Ideas of storytelling and escapism are vital to my art, as all of my works contain references to my personal memories and dreams. I wish others could escape to these places as well. My intention in this body of work is to convey a story of reorientation, of adjusting from the real world to fantastical places. It incorporates physical and digital mediums, using traditional backgrounds with cartoon-like characters placed over the top to ‘animate’ scenes. The characters represented are those I have had since the beginning of high school. Metanoia Academy is my way of communicating this aspect of myself. 

My body of work examines the pervasive disconnect between humanity and nature that underscores our digital age. Through my work’s digital medium I have represented a glitch that seems to sweep away the landscape to reveal the underlying hex code. My work subverts the Romantic traditions of Australian landscape painting, conveying the inescapable presence of technology as it infiltrates even a medium inherently opposed to it. By juxtaposing the appearance of traditional texture and brushwork in the painting with digital distortion algorithms, such as pixel sorting, which fragment and dissolve this natural landscape, I communicate our disintegrating connection with nature.

In today’s interconnected world, individuals from all corners of the globe form vibrant local communities. Immigration, social media and the ease of travel foster a variety of familial and communal bonds. My body of work investigates the rich tapestry of diversity and the often-invisible threads of connection that bind us. Each of the individuals in my work represents a blend of history and culture. Subjects trace roots back to Hong Kong, South Africa, Europe and First Nations of South Australia. I invite the audience to consider who fills the chair beside them and the unseen interconnectedness in their own lives.

My body of work explores the self destructive nature of humans, and the indifference of the natural world, forewarning the event of human extinction if we continue to act on naive desires. Taking inspiration from the Chernobyl disaster, I use the gruesome subject matter of a tree slowly subsuming a person, bark gradually replacing skin and limbs stretching out with the roots to reinforce the notion of an indifferent natural world. A thriving forest, vivid green tones throughout and an abandoned nuclear generator symbolise how despite destructive human forces, nature will continue to reclaim and renew, erasing marks of human folly with its relentless resilience.

It’s theorised that if a goldfish is in a bowl or small tank its growth will be unnoticed. If you place the same fish in a pond it grows bigger; if you give it a chance to grow in a river it becomes bigger than it could even imagine. My body of work investigates this theory through dystopian representations of the digital age. My intention was to critique the isolation that occurs in contemporary society as a result of the controlling and destructive nature of technology, where the significance of ‘human connection’ is lost in a digital world of decay.

My body of work examines the states of narcissism and echoism, based on the Greek myth of Narcissus and Echo. The cat represents a self-centred perception of the world, seeing everyone else as shadowy, with their faces blending into each other. The state of echoism is conveyed by the figure with a box obscuring their face as they believe they are so unimportant. The water imagery references Narcissus, who drowns in a lake as a result of self-obsession. My intention in my work was to illustrate the dangers of narcissism and echoism, where too much of either results in self-destruction.

My body of work examines the stark shift from nostalgic childhood wonderment to a cynical world outlook. My 2D animated short film was inspired by my experience of changing cultural settings. It investigates the effects this sort of change can have on a person’s sense of place in the world, conveying the constant struggle of losing touch with one's childhood and cultural background. Countering these struggles is the teru teru bōzu, a traditional rain charm made by Japanese children, including me, to ward off the rain. It represents the powerful ability of nostalgic traditions to restore hope and identity.

My body of work examines the dichotomy between the ocean’s serene beauty and urban life’s relentless chaos. It contrasts the sublime and timeless ocean – which fosters connection, tranquillity and a profound sense of unity – with the city, its ceaseless hustle cutting people off from the natural world. My intention was for the city to represent disconnection and the oppressive passage of time. The title, The Divide, expresses how the divorce of my parents forced my separation from the ocean, which is my passion, plunging me into the chaotic energy of city life, where the overwhelming pace and disarray consumed me.

In my body of work my intention was to spark the audience’s thoughts about the way our developing, fast-paced society affects our appreciation for smaller, unnoticed experiences. These occasions are often overlooked. I have used sketches and a dry brush painting style to represent the significance of these intimate, quiet and mundane moments of life and human relationships. My work uses nostalgia in homage to these easily forgotten points in time. Wherever you go, you will find humanity.