Interview
Elizabeth Kate Cooper
Elizabeth Kate Cooper (Lizzie) is a Christian artist whose passion is to create works that celebrate the beauty and complexity of the beautiful fauna and flora of God's incredible creation. As an Australian artist, most of her work boasts the beauty of Australian sceneries (particularly in the Central Queensland area), as well as the unique animals, birds and flowers of this incredible country. She loves working with a pallet knife to recreate the energy and flow of stunning landscapes on her larger acrylic on canvas works, as well as sitting down to the finer details of character and specific features in her watercolor and ink fauna and flora works.
Elizabeth has two very different mediums - watercolor and acrylic on canvas. She started with acrylic on canvas, using a palette knife to create movement and flow and a stunning texture to her pieces that she absolutely loved! This is her baby - what she started out with following senior art in high school. When she moved houses and didn't have the space for acrylic work, she got hooked on watercolor! It's a really fun little medium that produces a gorgeous smoothness and almost softness to the final painting. She loves the precision in the shadowing and detail she can get with this medium, and it's also really fun to teach with so many different techniques to create pattern and texture.
There's something beautiful about landscapes that connect people and place. Elizabeth loves how a piece can bring back a flood of memories. The oh-so-familiar contours and curves of the horizon, from which sunrises and sunsets have been seen, the paths and tracks up those hills so often climbed. And, almost stronger than those memories, are the feelings and emotions that wash over as the senses remember the sights, sounds and scents of these places. Her pieces to date have mainly come from the Queensland coastline, but also from places her heart longs to visit - including her latest collection of the picturesque Sydney coastline. Her landscapes primarily star the blue and gold of the coast - turquoise oceans and golden beaches. However, she has recently been branching out to play with cloudy and stormy days, bringing more 'moodiness' to the pieces. She has also started sunset pieces, which are so fun with their pink and purple variations!
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I started out my career as an allied health professional, having the privilege of working with a wonderful, dedicated team in a regional hospital for a number of years. In November 2020, our precious daughter was born prematurely, and we lost her three weeks later. Painting was one of the ways I managed to stay focused on the beauty there still was in the world around me, despite the fact that our little angel was no longer with us. Though our beautiful little Anna will never be far from my heart, God has bought so much good through her short life, including the opportunity for me to launch my career as an artist. I believe art really is a God-given gift to bring so much healing, as we allow our soul the space to breathe and express our deepest emotions. As such, I so value the opportunity to bring joy and peace and awe into the homes of my collectors through my works, as well as share the experience of creative expression in my classes.”
What inspires you?
“My passion as a Christian artist is to create works that celebrate the beauty and complexity of the beautiful fauna and flora of God's incredible creation. As an Australian artist, most of my work boasts the beauty of Australian sceneries (particularly along the Queensland coastline), as well as the unique animals, birds and flowers of this incredible country. I love working with a pallet knife to recreate the energy and flow of stunning landscapes on my larger acrylic on canvas works, as well as sitting down to the finer details of character and specific features in my watercolor and ink fauna and flora works.”
“I love to paint places that have special meaning to the people I know, hearing the stories behind the place and bringing them to life in my paintings.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“I create me pieces to point people to see the beauty in the world around them. I tend to paint familiar landscapes, birds and animals to prompt the viewer to notice the beauty in the colors and delicate detail that surrounds them wherever they go. Ultimately, I want to point to the Creator, being in awe at His creativity in creating such a beautiful and complex world that we are so blessed to enjoy!”
How would you describe your work?
“My work is generally colorful, and fun! My landscapes are recognizable, but a little more impressionistic as I use the palette knife to capture the movement and life of a scenery - adding in little details to capture the essence of the place. My watercolor paintings are a little more realistic, as I capture the details of my subjects - always adding a splash or flourish of color that is my little signature, emphasizing the stunning colors within the feathers or fur of my subject. I tend to leave a lot of negative space in my watercolor paintings to keep the focus on the subject of my painting.”
Which artists influence you most?
“I loved learning about Claude Monet and the impressionists in senior high school, and their work has greatly influenced my own style.”
What is your creative process like?
“Each of my pieces takes about a week to create. The first day is a massive one, starting early and finishing late to get the main image completed, and the rest of the week is spent adding detail and final touches - and, of course, writing the story that goes along with the painting. Each piece means something to me, and teaches me something, and I think it's important to share that. With my landscapes, I spend a lot of time measuring out the proportion, getting a good undercoat - and then, once I start with the palette knife, I need to work quickly to work the flow of colors together before the paint dries. Then it's sitting down to add the details. With my watercolor, it's a long process of sketching to ensure the proportions are exact, then doing multiple layers and allowing them to dry in between, giving depth to the painting.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I believe the role of the artist is to point people to the beauty still in the world! To bring color and joy into people's lives, and to cause them to smile. I think especially landscape, botanical, animal and birdlife artists have a particular role in prompting the world to notice the stunning beauty and grace that surrounds them in nature, as we spend more and more time enclosed within four walls.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“Since I launched my career at the beginning of last year, I have had two three exhibitions. "Uniquely Australia Fauna & Landscape" (July 2022) and 'Bayside & Bushland" (March 2023) each showcased two of my four main collections I have created since starting 'Elizabeth Kate Fine Artworks'. My 'Little Miracles' (February 2023) exhibition showcased my latest works, raising money for the Mater Little Miracles Foundation - a organization which supported us through our time in the neonatal intensive care with our baby girl. It was a great success, which I am planning on turning into an annual event.”
Website: www.elizabethkate.art
Instagram: @elizabeth.kate.art
Other link: www.facebook.com/elizabethkateart
