Meet the Maker Monday | Cynthia Orr

To describe my style is some what of a mystery. I feel I have acquired and delivered many and varying styles over the years. I love to paint the ways of the masters and yet the freedom of painting vivid and distinct strokes is becoming by far my most favourite. I am very fortunate to be able to adapt my collection to what ever style I feel to do at the time.

Inspiration is a very personal thing to an artist. To the viewer it is probably obvious that nature and all that it entails is definitely a part of why I paint the image I do. However, for me it goes deeper than that as I connect with the God who created it all.

My heart is moved by my experiences in life and in the lives of those around me. I have been privileged to see people moved to emotion with my artworks and the meanings behind them. They enjoy knowing the details and not just witnessing a ‘pretty picture’.

I absolutely love colour and the mood it creates and I enjoy mixing the paints to gain a whole new palette again and again. That certainly inspires me.

I have had many memorable responses to my work. One that comes to mind is of a woman who stood in front of one my paintings for ages at an exhibition. She walked around and came back and stood once again, for ages! She did this a number of times. As I approached her, she was all welled up and very sad. She really touched my heart. I listened as she revealed her story and why this particular painting had caused her so much emotion which in turn saw me reach for the tissues. Needless to say, I gave her that painting that day. I have bumped into her a number of times since then; she still is moved by the artwork and means the world to me.

I have been working on something left of field at the moment and that is designing and painting wall art in the York Street Café. Always good to change it up and always up for a challenge. Working to a brief can be daunting, but I really enjoyed it.

My dream project would be to be one of many artists coming together for one purpose in a community environment where people could watch, ask questions and the artists could share their heart and love for their craft, but more importantly, to bless those people. It would involve musicians to set the mood and to create space for conversations. Something like that.

Albany is growing better and better each year in the Arts and Culture scene. I love that the growing need to accommodate more avenues and display areas for artists is being heard and developed. There are so many talented artists that need affordable exhibition venues and I hope to see more spaces being used. I’m encouraged that movement is happening and I look forward to seeing what will happen next.

See more of Cynthia's work at www.corrart.com.au