2002

“With her latest series of paintings, ALLURE, Courtenay submits entirely to the evocative allusions of he subject by substituting the rose itself for an exquisitely rendered array of poetic details. Simple in their monochromatic colour and sparse placement in space, the small canvas renditions of delicate folds, tucks, protuberances and curves are redolent with symbolic intent.

A clue to the artist’s intent involvement in her subject matter lies in the titles she chooses- Red, Scent, Vanilla. These names suggest a synaesthetic relationship, where the ‘object’ dissolves and, instead, becomes an ambient message of its smell, touch and visual effect. Ethereal and intoxicating, soft and yet also strongly tough, these curious floral deviations evoke the same close attention as body parts or minute organic life under a microscope. Taking time to look closely yields greater visual delight, with effort, unexpected philosophical insight into the viewers own mind- the romantics’ Rorschach’s test perhaps? 

Stronger and yet simpler, Courtenay’s mature eye is opening onto a fresh world of seeing. Here, in these sensual pictures, she finds a pure symbolic language that is abstract and yet ultimately linked to its creative antecedent: the elegant, enigmatic rose.”

Metaphorical Blooms: The Art of Gabrielle Courtenay

Anna Clabburn June 2002.