Julie Hutchings
Julie Hutchings is based on a property in Grafton on the Northern Rivers of NSW. Her early career was devoted to horses, working as a strapper and later managing a horse stud. She began studying commercial art in 1988, and has since pursued both interests with equal passion. Initially working in Graphic Design and Signwriting she felt restricted creatively and made the transition to Fine Arts, she has been a full time artist for the past twenty one years, exhibiting on a professional level since 2001. Julie has won numerous Awards both locally and nationally. She is an intuitive artist who paints with tremendous energy & expression. Julie retains the discipline of drawing by conducting and attending life drawing sessions weekly with the remainder of her time spent in her studio painting and drawing.
Horses, racing and jockeys are a significant theme in one strand of her works, while her studies of the human form exhibit significant levels of vitality and emotion.
She has exhibited in numerous commercial galleries, and her works are held in private collections throughout Australia and New Zealand. As well as exhibiting commercially, Julie has had exhibitions in Regional Galleries such as a solo exhibition at Grafton Regional Gallery (2001) and a shared exhibition at Grafton Regional Gallery (2002). Julie is a member of Portrait Artists Australia and has been featured in their 2012 book as well as many newspaper articles and art publications. Julie made the short list for the 2012 Cricket Art Prize.
Artist Statement
Whilst subject matter is important to me it is the process of the painting that excited, the journey and relationship that begins with the first brush strokes, the mark making and the experimentation with different mediums and my response to the surface as well as the subject. I am an intuitive artist who paints with emotion, energy and expression.
Some of my works evolve from personal history, while others formulate from poetry, music and stories. Often the paintings have meta meanings that engage the viewer to form their own interpretation.
