Artist of the month

Karyn Fendley is a contemporary landscape artist based in Mullumbimby, known for her bold compositions, luminous colour, and evocative interpretations of nature. Her work explores how people remember the landscapes they’ve visited, distilling their essence into imagery that captures atmosphere rather than literal detail.

Fendley’s signature style combines dramatic compositions, flattened perspectives, and striking contrasts of light and shadow. Her paintings sit between abstraction and realism — recognisable yet distilled, with simplified forms enriched by deeply resonant colour. Influences include Japanese woodblock prints and the modernist approach of Australian artists Dorrit Black and Margaret Preston.

Her recent series takes inspiration from the coastal lakes, wetlands, and paperbark forests of the Arakwal, Bundjalung, and Yuraygir National Parks in northern New South Wales. These works evoke a strong sense of place through distinctive local motifs and palettes.

Guided by a deep respect for nature, Fendley draws inspiration from the resilience of wetlands and the unseen ways trees communicate and support one another. Influenced by the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku (forest bathing), she creates paintings that invite viewers to pause, breathe, and reconnect with the natural world.