Ruth Piper – visual artist/painter

My painting practice is embedded in the natural world. Joy and sadness cohabit as I observe and explore what has become a journey of an extraordinary time in human history. The paintings that I make are layered landscapes from elements, either invented or observed in different places, aided by my imagination, photographic references and memory. They may have a nocturnal appearance, creating an unsettling melancholic, but slightly dreamlike atmosphere.The interested viewer who cares to linger, might observe in the margins, activity, in the dark shadows and undergrowth. Animal or human shapes in the rocks and tree forms emerge as a result of long looking.
We inhabit this beautiful planet for only a very short time in its vast history and with luck some will find the perfect inner dwelling place where dreams and reality merge: and everywhere in corners of the natural world amongst the detritus of our species, there will be new growth and abundance.

Metamorphosis – acrylic on canvas – 90 x 90