A lovely interview up on Bedthreads today:

“Growing up, Charlotte Swiden always knew she wanted to be an artist. But like so many other creative types she didn’t think this was a viable career option. Fast forward to now and this narrative has flipped, with the Swedish-born painter successfully turning her passion into a full-time job with her artworks highly sought after across the country.

And while we often contemplate artists through their divine work, we less frequently think of them in their respective homes. Charlotte’s Mornington Peninsula abode is a beautiful example of being conscious about what you buy for your home. Her ’70s-style home in Dromana is filled almost entirely with vintage furniture and decor. “We also try to not buy anything new unless we have to,” she says.”

A beautiful project by @davidovarchitects featuring ‘Three Moons’.

@enceladus.studio

Today is the last day to see ‘Lores’, @b.ecsmith and my show at @novacancygallery
Gallery is open 10am-4pm

📷 @graham_alderton

Last year I had the privilege to be invited by @simonehaag to paint a mural in one of their design projects in Sorrento. A beautiful house buy @jostarchitects
What I love about Simone is how differently she thinks about interior. They know exactly how to mix bold art & statement pieces, textures & colours, and still make a home feel like a home. To quote something I read recently: “People need art in their houses. They don’t need Bed, Bath and Beyond denist-office art. They need weird stuff.” [Ezra Croft]. If you like that, then Simone is your woman.

For this project I was pretty much given free rein. The brief was bedroom meets beach, with love for the female form. I used 14 @duluxaus colours that I also mixed and layered like a painting. It was great to work on this huge scale, and my legs definitely got a work-out running up and down the ladder.

Also to @melissa__strauch Designer & Communications lead at Simone Haag for making this happen in between lockdowns, you are a 💎

The most magical night! Thank you to each one of you that came out to our opening of ‘Lores’. No stories are told in solitude and the show wouldn’t have been without you. Feeling full of love and gratitude ❤️
To @b.ecsmith for being the best friend and fellow artist someone could ever have wished to be on this journey with. To @kerensa_diball @myfwarhurst and @solfoto.portrait for your performances that made the night, thank you from the bottom of my heart. To @novacancygallery, for the opportunity to show our work at your amazing gallery. Now excuse me while I go and enjoy all my fuzzy, high feelings for a while.

Exhibition is continuing until the 27 February.

A beautiful write up on the Design Files today:

‘We tell ourselves stories in order to live,’ wrote Joan Didion in 1979. It’s an oft misquoted line, used to validate the human connection to storytelling, rather than to critique the delusions we wittingly commit to.

Narrative is a knotty concept these days, filled with optimism and hope, but also with danger. In the wrong hands, stories can do damage.

This conflict is what drives a new exhibition from Charlotte Swiden and Bec Smith. The two painters have joined forces on ‘Lores’ to explore narrative, myth-making, creativity, and knowledge transfer through their separate abstract art practices, opening tomorrow at No Vacancy Gallery in Melbourne.

Read the full article here

Words Sasha Gattermayr  |  Photography Graham Alderton

So excited to be featured on Hunter & Folk this week!

“Opening at Melbourne’s No Vacancy Gallery on 15 February 2022, Lores ruminates on creative life in lockdown while expanding on the stories that connect us.

Melbourne-based artists Bec Smith and Charlotte Swiden’s collaboration unfolded through the city’s harsh lockdowns. Now in 2022, the collection of works created purposefully for the exhibition pose a reflection on this challenging time and how creativity — despite the odds — thrived.

Bec and Charlotte first found each other’s practice through social media. They discovered an alignment of creative motivations and personal values plus a shared approach and attitude to their practices.

Charlotte first reached out to Bec as designers by trade, successful artists, and mothers to young children, questioning ‘How do you do it all?’ in 2020. ‘I don’t think I had anyone around me that understood the creative pursuit and motherhood at that time, and Bec was exactly the person I was missing,’ Charlotte reveals.

‘I had admired her work for a long time. For someone who is as busy as Charlotte, she is more grounded than any person could ever be!’ Bec adds.

The result of this meeting, and all the subsequential conversations and discussions had in 2021, is reflected in Lores – a series of artworks within themes of storytelling, individual and collective narratives, and mythologies.

Inspired by Modernism and design sensibilities, both artists’ work follow a similar aesthetic focused on shape and pattern, referencing mysterious and quirky stories. However, the approach varies from minimalist and primary colours for Bec and maximalist in earthy tones and texture for Charlotte.

Read the full article here

Words Emma-Kate Wilson  |  Photography Graham Alderton

Our catalogue for Lores is now available from No Vacancy Gallery website.
Sales open 8am Thursday Feb 10, first in best dressed!