Whilst Andrews drawings are guided by a sense of naturalistic form, they move beyond this into something more. His images evolve and bloom into compositions that feel guided by processes of repetition and contemplation.
-How would you describe your work?
Within my art practice, I aim to explore the cycle of life and death – two massive concepts I know.
I try to describe the beauty and fragility in the transition of life to death.
I find my works often reference the intricacies of the natural world, focusing especially on flora and fauna and are realised through ink drawings, light works, hand cut paper works and kinetic sculptures.
-Where do you find inspiration?
I am really fascinated by nature and this is my main source of inspiration. I love it’s delicate beauty, variety, complexity and detail.
I also find a lot of inspiration in materials, how loaded with meaning they can be and the different readings that can be created from combining various materials together.
-How does the local landscape and environment feed into your work?
As an artist I think it’s really important to respond to your environment. Whether that is subversive or literal I think traces of my surroundings are present within my work, mostly through sight specific interactions with nature. For example, with a recent artwork I wanted to create an interaction with butterflies that were native to a particular region in Perth W.A, as I was living there at the time. I knew I needed to do it in a very respectful and considered way. I have used dead butterflies in my work for many years and I thought it was time I looked at the whole life cycle. I suspended the living pupas inside a glass dome and timed it so they would hatch on opening night, then once they had hatched, they were released into the surrounding gardens.
-Can you talk about your style, what kind of process do you use and how has it developed over the years?
My father was a botanical illustrator; he used to teach my sister and I after school and on the weekends, I remember as a child he showed me a printed line under a microscope. It was made up of tiny single pixels.
This was the first time I began to explore the idea of using only dots to create a form.
The process of drawing I use is called stippling, each image is made of thousands of tiny dots.
It takes me around an hour to produce a 2 cm square, simply due to the fineness of the pen that I use and the weight of the mark it makes.
-What do you enjoy most about being an artist? What are the challenges?
I get the most enjoyment from the end result, from the audience interacting with and responding to the works.
I enjoy discovering new process and pushing my practice to new creative levels. I also enjoy the refinement of a certain idea or technique.
The challenges are mostly time and money – and not having enough of either. Haha.
-Advice for aspiring artists?
I think with any creative industry, but particularly the arts, commitment and dedication are really rewarded in the long run. Even when it borders on obsession.
I would advise them to just keep making new work and to try and create something new every single day. Also to focus on their personal style and to strive to perfect their craft.
Tane Andrews
taneandrews.com