Viola Dominello
Recent Work
6 October - 31 October
View exhibition catalogue
VIOLA DOMINELLO creates works of quiet wonder. Finding inspiration near her home around the Hawkesbury and the hinterlands, a warmth and familiarity exudes from the landscapes. Working en plein air her first impressions jot down the essential features of the landscape, capturing an instant of changing light and tone. This sense of immediacy speaks of an intuitive artistry that captures the feeling and mood of a place. Through painterly gesture DOMINELLO's practice is imbued with a sensitivity that reveals moments of the intricate and transient beauty of the landscape.
Lively switching between watercolour and oil paints, DOMINELLO responds to the felt experience. Working en plein air, her practice is inspired by the German Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich, who outlines, "The artist should not only paint what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. If, however, he sees nothing within him, then he should also omit to paint then what he sees before him". For DOMINELLO it is this first encounter through en plein air practice that is later recreated in the studio, resulting in highly perceptive emotive works.
What excites DOMINELLO's work is an unceasing curiosity to push the boundaries of her practice. In constructing her works, such as with On the River, 'concertina' moleskine sketchbook, DOMINELLO used a format to unfold the landscape as the eye travels along. With vigour DOMINELLO cuts into the paint, moving and scraping it over the canvas to create texture and movement. Her en plein air landscapes are atmospheric in mood and tonality, layered with calligraphic marks to evoke landscapes alive with movement and energy.
