“[I hope people take] delight in the way colour and tone work.” Danielle Rochecouste at Tyger

We are thrilled to welcome Danielle Rochecouste to Tyger with three beautiful works that are available now.

Tyger is delighted to welcome the outstanding Queensland artist Danielle Rochecouste to the gallery with three brilliant works.

Danielle has been a practising artist for more than 30 years. Her beautiful expressionist-influenced works show a deep love of nature and rural and coastal landscapes.

Her work has been in more than 20 group exhibitions and featured in the Moreton Regional Art Awards, Border Art Prize, and the Milburn Prize.

Her beautiful works for Tyger - Afternoons at Lake Weyba, Mothers Day, and The Walled Garden - are available online and in the gallery now.

Ahead of putting them on the gallery walls, Danielle told us about the inspiration behind the works at Tyger, her love of experimentation, and why her paintings rarely start with a blank canvas.

How would you describe your style?

"My art can be described as expressionistic and draws on influences from both traditional landscape and contemporary abstract expressionism."

"My preferred mediums are drawing, painting (acrylic) and mixed media, although I have also experimented in areas such as printmaking, etching, ceramics, sculpture, encaustic, mosaic, felting and silversmithing as a way to broaden my exposure to different art forms and explore how this can influence and shape my main practices."

"I consider painting my main medium, borne out of a passion for American abstract expressionism but I am constantly exploring contemporary and traditional art practices from Asia-Pacific, Europe and Americas to consider different approaches, particularly in relation to interpretation of nature and landscape."

Where do you create your work?

"I usually start initial works outdoors, observing the natural environment. Ideally, I love to paint directly outdoors, but in many cases, I develop a mix of detailed drawings and rough sketchbook work either in situ or from photos in the studio. I then spend further time working on paintings in the studio where I can also prepare a range of surfaces that best express my response to the environment."

How do you create your work?

"I am interested in systems and processes of mark making and building surface layers to intuitively respond to and interpret visual stimuli and form."

"I enjoy moving between faster sketchbook works and more sustained pieces to create a response to space and to developing a variety of visual languages for memories felt and processed. “

"The work I do in-situ in the landscape could be shorthand responses, including pattern or marks to process my observations and impressions. I enjoy experimenting with surfaces and creating a ground that can serve as a starting point and provide unexpected marks and colours to respond to. My paintings rarely start with a blank white canvas or sheet of paper!"

Tell us about the works at Tyger

"The works at Tyger are all based on places that I love. Their beauty and calming ambiance really resonated with me and made me want to capture that in paint."

"The most recent paintings from my visit to Blue Mountains are particularly meaningful as it was my first visit back to the area since Covid, after being a regular visitor over many years. I felt a sense of both attachment and nostalgia."

What inspires you?

"My work is inspired by nature and en plein air traditions but with a keen interest in abstraction, mark making and experimentation. I am particularly interested in exploring pattern, line and colour to create spaces, using different processes in mark making."

"While I am generally inspired by the natural environment, the 'kernel' of my interest could be from something like fabric, patterned tile, a cast shadow or a figure. The subject is a starting point with the key being the interpretation into a space and exploring how a sensation or observation can be translated in a way that is not necessarily representational."

"My work comes out of a love of experimentation with mark making and surfaces to create works that are interpretative rather than representational. I like to have a sense of randomness in the starting point and then work intuitively with paint or other materials to capture the essence of the moment. Whilst this is generally the natural environment, it can vary. I am not afraid of colour and while I’ve been influenced by traditional landscape conventions, I have a strong affinity to the American Abstract Expressionists."

How do you hope people feel when they see the work?

“I hope they feel curious about what it is interpreting and conveying and delight in the way colour and tone work.”

Check out the three beautiful works by Danielle here.