Natalie Toplass- fine artist

Whilst my work is discernibly representative, I wish the viewer to feel drawn into what becomes for me a speculative visual story combining colour, whimsy, natural life and occasionally humour. The medium is oil built up in many layers to create a vivid and translucent finish, this process also supports a depth and intensity of colour enhancing the drama. I’ve been trying to get to the core of why I have these recurring themes running through my work and after much ruminating I’ve realised the natural life element is enormously important. The natural world displays incredible diversity and tenacity adjacent with transience and fragility. You see the interconnectedness of nature, that you are part of something bigger, something vital that pays no attention to theology or wealth, and I delight in that liberation. Adjacent to these core values, occasionally acting as a kind of ‘theatrical’ setting, is a still life aspect to my work, drawing ideas from neglected or discarded objects and places- creating a visual connection. It’s these aspects that develop their own provinence, their own stories that I find interesting, and realising that a narrative is fundamental to my painting by combining the two is fascinating and ever evolving.