Winter tulips with nautilus shells, 2023

The saturation of ‘content’ in our modern world is all-encompassing. It permeates our time, experiences and thoughts in the most insidious way, overwhelming us with very specific ideals of beauty that can feel crude and unenduring. My art practice is a defiance against this. I explore the notion of beauty as it is gleaned from the natural world; and how a conscious witnessing of our resplendent Earth’s treasures can bring both contentment and reprieve. The large-scale watercolour paintings I make focus on organic elements such as flowers, shells and fruits while intentionally excluding any man-made artefacts or settings. ‘Winter tulips with nautilus shells’ intends to give pause and appreciation to the interplay of chaos and harmony in the natural realm. A mass of white tulips in their prime draws the eye in: they are curling, stretching, bursting with life and charm. Yet hiding behind is a neat tower of nautilus shells; a symbol of divine order and precision but also a practical form against which the flowers may stand tall and flourish. The tight cropping leaves many beautiful details outside the frame, but this is intentional. This curation of detail is to distil what I find most captivating and inherently beautiful into the picture; and in turn, lead the viewer to a moment of respite and elemental connection with the sheer wonder of nature.

Pip Spiro is a Brisbane-based watercolour artist best known for her vivid, large-scale paintings inspired by the beauty of the natural world.

Following a degree in Business Management from the University of Queensland, Pip worked in advertising before pursuing art making in 2011. She has gone on to be a part of group exhibitions in Australia and has had multiple sellout solo shows and coveted annual releases. Pip completes a steady stream of commissions each year and has work held in private collections across the world, as well as in the Mater Private and Sunshine Coast University Hospital’s in Queensland.

Pip works from her home studio in New Farm, Brisbane where she lives with her husband and three young children. She describes her watercolour practice as a ritual, an escape and her life’s great joy.