Stephanie began painting in 2018 after autoimmune disease forced early retirement from her career as a veterinarian. Encouragement from her psychologist and a portrait of Nick Cave by Archibald finalist Ben Smith led her to oil painting classes. Prior to this she had appreciated art but never explored her own practice.
Stephanie’s first portrait of her husband was a finalist in the 2019 SBS Portrait Prize. Another, of her friend Trevor and his dog, was a finalist in the inaugural Du Rietz Art Prize. A self portrait was selected as a finalist in the 2021 Royal South Australian Society of the Arts portrait prize. This year she attained the level of associate RSASA member.
Last July Stephanie held her first solo exhibition ‘Many Hearts’ at ArtPost in the village of Uki, her former home. This was a collection exploring themes that helped her find strength through illness and loss of her son and career.
Oil painting facilitates Stephanie’s habitual attention to detail and to nuances of light and colour plus allows for correction of slips from her stiff hands. She is fascinated by portraits of both people and animals, particularly by the way tiny details can express character .
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