Diana Watson
“What inspires me to make art?” asks Australian artist, Diana Watson. And she answers, “Everything. It is a complete way of life, never far from my thoughts, seeing beauty all around me, colours, shapes, shadows, nature and the challenge of putting it on canvas. I love Picasso’s quote, ‘The purpose of art is to wash the dust of everyday life from our souls’.”
Diana paints in oils on canvas or board and works from her studio overlooking Sydney Harbor. An early memory is sitting and drawing with her father, and her art career flexed with the stages of her life: school, marriage, motherhood. She studied fine and commercial art, and worked as an illustrator for interior design and fashion advertising. “When trompe l’oeil and painted furniture became fashionable, I launched into that. Then came fashion drawing commissions and fabric painting, anything creative. It was not until our daughters had left home that I was able to follow my real dream to paint full-time.”
Diana is a prolific artist of sumptuous still life paintings, Italy-ispired landscapes, horse studies, and the human figure. Though her daughters have families of their own, Diana remains creatively connected to them and finds their family conversations continually influence her work. “Design, in every form,” she muses, “is a constant topic of discussion.” Her husband Bill is her greatest support system and handles the business side of her studio. She is represented by galleries in Australia and the United States.