The Belong Song, 2024

Colour is the thing I start with. Colour expresses what is going on for me at the time that I paint. Colour expresses how I am feeling more than words possibly could. For this reason, my artwork and palette can change a lot from day to day. I work intuitively, yet I am influenced by the colours of the natural world. Flowers and nature appear loosely in my work and represent what is happening internally. If I paint flowers, they will appear wild or uncontained. If they are in a container, they will break free. This illustrates how I feel about the world and my passion for breaking rules, living free from societal constraints, and reclaiming the mystical and magical parts of being human. My artwork is multi-layered, each layer building on the history of a piece. Sometimes, only small fragments of a previous layer remain and, no matter how tiny, are so important in the final piece. I draw a comparison to life and how every part of ourselves – good, bad, and ugly – make up who we are, and try as we might to hide parts we don’t wish to show; it all forms a full and real picture of who we are.

Deni Rayneau is an abstract expressionist artist and mentor in Sydney, Australia. The youngest of nine, she was born to parents raised in India and spent her childhood in New Zealand. Thus, the vibrant colours in her work reflect a rich cultural tapestry.

Flowers and nature emerge as symbols of internal experiences. Deni’s art reflects a passion for living free from societal constraints and embracing humanity’s mystical and magical aspects. Her work mirrors life’s complexity—the good, bad, and ugly—forming a genuine and complete portrayal of human existence.

Deni uses acrylic paint overlaid with oil pastel, pencil, and ground pigments on raw canvas and textured paper; Deni’s compositions are influenced by a training and background in graphic design yet have freedom, curiosity and wildness.