Meg Walters
Northern NSW-based artist Meg Walters’ paintings are a catalogue of her life experiences, blending nostalgia with reality to create otherworldly, contrasting and textural landscapes.
Words: Holly Terry I Photography: Bonnie-Grace Dwyer-Holloway
‘I pinch myself every day that my job is to do the thing I love the most in the world. My lifelong dream has become a reality,’ says Meg Walters. Photo: Bonnie-Grace Dwyer-Holloway
Ineffable Glow by Meg Walters.
Rambling Down Memory Lane by Meg Walters.
Meg Walters energy so freely pours onto her works, it’s almost as if her emotive paintings convey a deep look inside her soul, her most intimate place of being.
Chatting with the painter, she describes her works as a sort of catalogue of her life. For Meg, ‘every single road bump, victory, heartbreak and setback [have] become notches on my proverbial belt and something that informs my work but does not define it.’
Having grown up in Bermuda, then Canada, followed by study in London, we can safely assume that Meg’s life has so far been diverse, varied and ever-changing.
The artist describes her memories as a type of glue which holds each of these places together. ‘It’s interesting to me the memories that imprint themselves onto us from childhood especially. They become these cherished, unaltered relics we like to place on a shelf,’ she says.
These days, the maker resides in Northern New South Wales, where she seeks to pair the nostalgia of her younger years with her life in the present, resulting in otherworldly works. ‘They’re neither here nor there but exist in another, imagined place,’ says Meg.
‘I paint from a place of emotional intensity. While my inner world may be chaotic and turbulent, somehow my paintings can become calm places where I’d like to escape. They’ve become respites from the world and remind me of times when I felt safe, curious and inspired.’
‘When the urge to paint comes, it can seize me for hours on end. There’s a real timelessness that comes with painting. I put my phone on airplane mode and forget about life for a while,’ says Meg Walters. Photo: Bonnie-Grace Dwyer-Holloway
Antiquity of Myth (detail) by Meg Walters.
Nature’s Lament (detail) by Meg Walters.
‘I like to have contrasting colours, textures, different points of interest, whilst also maintaining balance. I’ll often lay down multiple thin layers of paint before coming in with more texture (as the final layer),’ says Meg Walters. Photo: Bonnie-Grace Dwyer-Holloway
“Life [has made me the maker I am today]! I’ve catalogued every single road bump, victory, heartbreak and setback. They’ve become notches on my proverbial belt and something that informs my work, but they don’t define it.”
Infinite Stillness by Meg Walters.
Over the years, her creative journey has ebbed and flowed, ‘There were times when I put everything I had into making, and times when it was merely in the background. It’s all led me to where I am today, and I’m thrilled with that.’
Until she took a leap of faith while pregnant with her daughter, six years ago, the artist was discovering that she wasn’t the type to work 60-hour weeks in an office, and knew she needed a more balanced lifestyle raising kids. It was this realisation that became the primary driving force behind her decision to become an artist in a professional capacity.
These days, the painter predominantly creates vivid landscapes (and people, at times). Her works are characteristic of their intricate layers, met with contrasting colour, textures and focal points. Descriptive palettes are a predominant feature of her work, invoking a realm of emotions, yet somehow, the painter seamlessly manages to counter the business with a sense of clarity, balance and harmony. ‘I let instinct guide me and lean into colours I associate with different emotions or places. I mix paint as I go, so I don’t think I could ever replicate a colour…it becomes a bit of a frenzied mess in the studio when I’m painting, but I believe I channel that energy into my work,’ says Meg.
Professionally, Meg’s year ahead seems to hold the same buzz of activity replicated in her personal life, with numerous solo exhibitions on the horizon. This month, she has a show, Reimagined Landscape, with the prestigious Michael Reid Northern Beaches in Sydney, followed by a solo exhibition with A.K. Bellinger in July. Later in the year, Megs’ work will be exhibited at Otomys in Melbourne. She also hints toward plans for an exciting residency but keeps the details relatively under wraps. Watch this space!