Caroline Butler
12in x 16in
Title As we fall back to earth
An imagined story of flowers; wild things, violently cut from their root, domesticated, forced into vases on tables, travelling from outside to inside.
The house vibrated with emotion. I was drawn to the floral bouquets that were sent as expressions of condolence and contemplated the weight flowers bear as outward symbols of inner grief.
I excavated petals, gazed at them intimately, explored how flowers felt, how they sounded when I crushed them, noted their aroma as they transitioned from life to death. I held a flower in one hand whilst painting it with my non dominant hand.
Delighted to have explored oil in a more organic, connected way, I would like to develop my final project further by connecting the life cycle of flowers to my menopausal journey, potentially integrating the figure and portraiture.
Paintings below are from the same body of work including: ‘In air we dance’ (top left) & ‘They try to contain us’ (top right)
“The final project allowed me to synthesise the knowledge I have accumulated this year. I utilised the sensuality and expressiveness, the mark making and oil painting skills from the wonderfully diverse OFCAD modules to deepen my work.”