CateTownsend

In The Artist’s Words

I like to see the beauty in life and hope that my art reflects this. Drawing inspiration from nature, the Orient, Art Nouveau, and Picasso I am continually developing my work and my passion.
As far as I am concerned there are no boundaries with my art, and I use a variety of tools and mediums in the creative process.

In my Words

Cates portfolio is like taking a journey, a journey with her through the world of art. You can see the way she has grasped different artistic concepts with both hands and turned them into her own. Then she has furthered her journey by taking her paintings and using the digital tools available to her has created further images. She does not shy away from experimenting and the fact her t-shirt won the PiMT Challenge Wearable Art with her image Freaked out Fish is proof of this!

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Freaked Out Fish T-Shirt, Mixed media New improved design for t-shirt

Cate’s portfolio is here

What an honour Painters in Modern Times thank you so much Marilyn.

I will share a little of my story with you and hopefully it will encourage others not to give up.

My father was a very talented artist and as a child I was eager to please him with my drawings. Unfortunately he was also an abusive alcoholic who constantly tore up my work and said I would never be any good. As you know we are programmed to a large degree by what is feed to us through our childhood.

After my father kicked in my artwork for my HSC while in a drunken rage I put away my pencils and my brushes. Over the years I would dabble a little here and there but the block was always there “your no good, you’ll never amount to anything”.

But there was always this little voice in the back of my mind saying “you are an artist. When studying business in 2001 my teachers noticed how well I could design and encouraged me to apply for a design course. I didn’t even have a portfolio so I rushed and did a couple of drawings. Anyway I got accepted and won an award for my graphic design and had it made into a postcard distributing 5000 copies worldwide.

Still it was hard to believe in myself, but I applied for a visual arts course the next year. Picasso Style Self Portrait was my first painting and I stayed up all night to finish it. I won another award for a magazing cover and had 50,000 copies published. I was starting to believe in myself finally.

Then something really dreadfull happened in my family and my world collapsed around me. It was 2003 when I completed the cert 2 in visual arts and it wasn’t until 2008 five years later that I enroled in the cert 4 which I am currently still undertaking. With the trauma I went through I lost all confidence in my ability and it has been through the wonderful support of my teacher Ray Rixon and beautiful people I have met on this site that has helped me to believe in myself and to know that yes I am an artist.

Winning this challenge has inspired me even further to keep striving past the barriers and keep making art.

It is so important to encourage your children and nurture them, for we really are the products of our environment.

Shine On Cate ! xxx