I came from Taiwan and have lived in Foster since 2017. Like all new migrants, I found the transition to life in rural Australia a challenge at first. Australian culture seemed strange and, of course, there was the barrier of language. I have been able, though, to overcome these obstacles through art. My painting has changed and flourished under the influence of the Australian landscape.

I am especially fascinated by the Australian flora. Taken by their variety and complexity, I have been moved to capture them in my painting. You might like to keep a perfect flower forever. The next best thing, I find, is to capture it in art and preserve its image, its soul if you like, forever.  I also feel that I can talk to them. When I am painting that I feel calm and joyful. This insight has motivated my art since coming here. I try to capture Australia’s flora in its infinite detail and its intriguing complexity. I try to capture the special personality of the individual plant and to show its kinship with and difference from others in the same or different species.

My painting, The Family, was completed in February: Chinese New Year, a time of high celebration for Chinese. I could not undertake a planned visit to my family due to Covid 19 restrictions, so I overcame my feelings of separation by throwing myself into the painting you see, a combination of Asian and Australian flora expressive of the dual cultures of my life now. Asian flora brings me back to my origins – part of an ancient culture with well understood behaviours and expectations. Australian flora illustrates the other side of my life – the Australian light, the open sky, the bush, the sea. Both these influences speak to new possibilities in my life as a local and as an artist. In all this though, nature is the artist. I am the medium.