Amanda Oliphant - Artist

The exposure to life excites me more than the exposure to art itself but it is art that allows for alternative ways of recognising and connecting us to our everyday surroundings. It helps to connect us back to people, place and purpose through partnerships and collaborations.

I am automatically drawn to all things associated with the natural world, especially natures own fragility but also natures ability to survive within hostile environments, most recently within the urban cityscape. Inspiration for my work primarily comes from trees, their presence, function, mystery and history but essentially their vulnerability within today's society. I seek to understand more and to share experiences through art.

Throughout my art practice my initial response to working has been to investigate associated materials, to research a site, to manipulate and change objects into newly created forms of enquiry. This has created the fundamental background to my practice but it is my desire for further investigation into the relationships between man and nature that allows me to distinguish our own sense of place, therefore exposing more about ourselves - connecting us to place through layers of significance. To understand cultural ecology is to understand relationships between people and place, there is never one without the other. Like many artists, I work within a range of disciplines and amongst different supporting networks but the physical act of making remains a strong element within my practice. The discipline of drawing not only supports my 3 dimensional works but allows for in-depth investigation and exploration of an idea. Life drawing is also an addition to my practice along with continued researching into appropriate environmental projects. I continue to be an active member of several artist groups with future projects and collaborations taking place. My artistic boundaries are constantly being re-arranged by new challenges, exhibitions and projects, inside and outside of the UK and I continue to be inspired by many different artists creativity.

"The very tool of creativity has the power to stimulate further
questioning, which is such an essential factor in being an effective artist"

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