Maria
Coughlan
fallen forms
One theme that has prominently come up in her work over the last four years is abstraction in nature. By this, she has been looking at the natural world as inspiration, but departing from literal, realistic representation to express the essence of her art through non-representational elements such as colour, shape, and texture.
Within this theme, she has been focused on connecting her work to meaning, and an idea that has repeatedly followed her practice is that of life and death, often associated with flowers and nature more broadly. She has also explored the concept of feminism, which is strongly connected to floral artwork. The meanings behind floral imagery representing feminism have significantly informed her work, alongside the personal meanings she brings to each piece she creates.
Using photographs, she has captured over the last few years whether shadows or direct images of floral arrangements from her everyday surroundings she uses them as references to create her paintings. While developing these works, she researches the ideas and meanings associated with the flowers she is depicting, while also experimenting with different painting techniques, colour combinations, and colour theory.