Ashes To Ashes – Bushfire Painting

Ashes To Ashes - Bushfire Painting

 Ashes To Ashes is a realistic acrylic painting depicting an Australian bushfire.This bushfire painting, titled Ashes To Ashes, is part of my BUSHFIRE series within the theme of CLIMATE CHANGE. It is painted in acrylic paint in the realist genre and I really wanted to capture the intensity of the heat and the flames, so the viewer would get a sense of compassion for the people who have to confront these out-of-control disasters. Australians have always known the threat of bushfires and we have a history of horror and destruction caused by fire. Two recent fires however had a direct impact on my family. The Canberra fire in 2003 and the Black Summer 2019-2020 were both devastating. The Black Summer in particular threatened 3 family members in 3 different regions of NSW. The fear and anguish I felt about these fires prompted me to paint this body of work. Part healing, part warning. The fact that a lot of governments around the world (including our own) are not taking global warming seriously is having a big impact on fire behaviour. Of course, if the summers are getting hotter, the knock-on effect means a dryer kindle for fuel. And it is not just global warming adding to the danger. Government budget cutbacks to Fire Services affect everything from back-burning capabilities to big-ticket acquisitions like helitankers. This land is on fire every year, it is inconceivable that we have to loan Aviation CH-47D Chinooks to fight fire on a seasonal basis. The government needs a better strategy and action plan. I love to paint! I learned to draw at a young age but once I started to understand the principles and techniques of painting, it transferred me to another level of appreciation and anticipation. Realism as a genre is defined by being a realistic or accurate representation of the visual world around us. Realism can refer to artworks in the genres of landscape | portraiture | still life | figurative | architectural.