‹ Our Artists | Kim Mancini

Kim Mancini

As long as I can remember, art has been a part of my life, be it drawing as a child, learning craft with my grandmother, collecting and creating with my aunties at Sandgate beach, trips to galleries with school, all has led me to have a great passion for art.
Through my adult life, I have continued to enjoy and explore art through further studies with TAFE. Firstly, in fashion design where I realised I was more interested in the art and having more freedom of expression than learning to be a fashion designer.
I studied for several years under the private tuition of Catherine ‘White Sullivan’, a traditional landscape artist and then studied at the Brisbane Institute of Art, learning more about art history, materials and techniques.

As a founding member of ‘Artrageous Community Art Centre’ in my local area, I spent many years developing skills as a teacher and community art worker. It was here, I developed a great passion not only for art but how to bring art and art education to the general community.

Perfection – We are obsessed with, in how we look, our surroundings, in our work, in our lives and especially in our art. As artists, we are expected to draw, paint or sculpt our subjects or concepts perfectly. We seek it in every moment of our lives. Why? Who decided what is perfect? What is an artist? What is art? What stops us from doing art? What are we afraid of? Not being perfect! I see a constant struggle with fellow artists and art students who question their work. Why do we always look to the outcome or the finished product? Why don’t we see the art as it is? The beauty within, the journey, the building stones of who we are – the artwork as it is. We don’t always appreciate the process, the journey the artist is trying to take us on.
As I evolved as an artist, I became more and more interested in producing a body of work that not only reflected my passion for art and life but also gave everyone the chance to see art in a new light. Artwork that was affordable and suitable to the general public. Why buy a print when you can own an original! This became my passion to help everyone appreciate art; have a chance to have real artwork in their homes and offices.

As a teacher of art, I hope to get everyone to realise that art is accessible to all, that we can all find a way to love art, be it as a collector or as a creator of it, as the artist. So in some way even if we don’t paint or create art, we are still artists because as the collectors, we create a space to display and enjoy our artwork.

What is art! In simple terms it means to ‘create’. If that’s the case, then we, in some way, are all artists because in some form or other, we all create!

For some it is about producing a decorative piece for their homes, for others it is about exploring their emotions. It is about displaying what they are passionate about, their journey in life and realising it through art. It doesn’t matter why, how or what we do, it is really about the journey, the joy it brings and recognising that it is achievable. Art is accessible to all of us. My classes and my views on art are simply that – “Believe in yourself, there is nothing you cannot achieve!”

My artwork is simply that created for all to enjoy, it comes from the heart and each piece is a little bit of me. I love to create atmosphere, mood, emotion, a reaction, in my work. I love using different media and textures but most of all, I love colour!
What can I say about me, as an artist – I am consumed by it! It is my life, my love, my passion, everything about life, nature, people, family, I see art in everything I see and touch. I love to learn to create, to look, to feel, I believe that in all of us, there is an artist waiting to burst out! Perhaps that’s why some of us are collectors, some of us design, some of us are gardeners, cooks, teachers, builders, no matter which way we look, it’s about art!