As an artist, I'm constantly drawn to the mesmerising beauty of water ripples. There's something magical about the intricate patterns and shapes that water creates, and I've made this a focus in my recent work.
​
Water ripples are the perfect subject for an artist, offering an endless array of shapes and forms to explore. With each body of water having its own unique characteristics, such as the size and shape of the water, the intensity and direction of the wind, and the presence of any objects in the water, water ripples can take on a countless number of forms.

In still water, the ripples often appear as elegant concentric circles that radiate outwards from a central point. These circles can become distorted or elongated if there's a rock or other object creating a disturbance in the water. In rough water, such as in the ocean, the ripples can become more unpredictable, forming wild peaks and troughs that crash against each other.

The interplay of light and water ripples creates stunning visual effects. As the ripples move, they reflect and refract light, creating a dynamic dance of colours and textures. Depending on the angle of the light source and the viewer, the ripples can appear to shimmer, sparkle, or even glow.

As an artist, capturing the unique patterns and shapes of water ripples can be both challenging and rewarding. I'm happy to share my latest work but I'm far from done exploring this subject. So stay tuned for more pieces to come!

This year I began a new body of work exploring visual snow disorder a little more and produced several works based on the dancing colours and shapes I see at night. Hopefully it will help raise awareness of the condition. So if you are finding this post by searching for visual snow, hi, I'm Jennifer and I'm an artist and designer based in Brisbane, Australia. I've had visual snow all my life. Some of my earliest childhood memories are watching the kaleidoscopic patterns of colourful dots at night to go to sleep. It’s all I’ve known.

If it wasn’t for a conversation in my early 20s I’d probably never have known how I see isn’t considered ‘normal’. I had a slight headache, someone asked if I was ok and I replied “the dots are a bit intense today”. That led to finding out the entire office didn't see dots! So when I got home I rang my mother and yes she could see the dots. I asked my dad, he didn’t know what we were talking about. I rang my sister and she didn’t know either. I rang my brother - yeah the dots what about them?! So at least I knew I wasn’t going mad which was lucky becasue when I mentioned it to a doctor they advised me not to tell people I was 'seeing things'! It also led to issues at work being a designer at the time. "How can you say that colour is ok if you see dots everywhere?" So I stopped trying to find out more.

When my son came along in 2013 I had renewed interest in finding out what it was. For me lack of sleep makes visual snow symptoms far more intense and nothing like a new baby for sleep deprivation! It tuned out by then people actually knew what it was and it had a name.

Ever since I was a child I had painted what I saw - colourful dots and lots of pattern in my art. Today my work is focused on pattern and visual perception. I paint very decorative abstracts with circles, dots and other patterns. I often refer to this as abstract pointillism. I distort photography by weaving images together and often end up with a lot of kaleidoscopic pieces. Being born with VS I am very used to the symptoms. I think you learnt to look through it a bit more growing up with it. Although some days it can be difficult I like to think of it as a hidden beauty only a few of us can see. 

I have started a facebook group for visual snow artists, creatives, designers so if you would like to join in you can find it here: visual snow artists on facebook.

Helsinki Design Week was held recently and there are definitely some trends coming out that I can get behind. Medgina Saint-Elie highlighted a few for House Beautiful...

Be like Marie and decorate with things that 'spark joy' rather than just following fads. This colourful abstract painting was inspired by the colours of a mango sorbet. After a difficult and stressful summer I wanted to create a series of artworks that, to steal the phrase from Marie Kondo, 'sparked joy'. Little beacons of painted happiness, full of colour and celebrating the good things about summer.

Say yes to colour in the home. Bold blue, deep mustard, yellows and peachy orange, whatever you like, the choices are limitless. Pictured above, Ocean Tides print in beautiful bold shades of blue and striking Gantheaume Point print of the Broome coastline with it's ​amazing red rocks and aqua water.

Mix colours and shapes in fun ways. The recent geometric print collection is a fun and affordable way to brighten up any space. Inspired by playful op art and patchwork patterns, these gorgeous new designs come in a range of sizes, from cute little 10x8in and A4 paper prints, to big 24x36in ready to hang canvas art.

Thanks to Bluethumb Art, another featured work, this time my photographic weaving 'Family Tree' in their Curve Appeal collection.

"Sculptural curves are popping up more frequently in 2022 interiors. Everything from the design of furniture to vases is embracing a softer side, adding a rounded modern touch to contrast the geometrics of previous years. Take the edges out of your life with our new curation of sculptures, paintings and photographs that take curves to the max in 3 dimensions."