Artist: Gina D’Alessandro
Painting: Holiday Blossom
Medium: Oils on canvas
Size (cm): 30 x 30 Framed | Year: 2022
Introducing: Gina
We felt very lucky to share a beautiful morning with Perth artist Gina and hear the story behind her work Holiday Blossom.
What’s your coffee order?
Flat white. Gotta be Karvan. I always have a short black in the afternoons, with a dash of oat milk for a bit of a pick-me-up.
Where can you view her work?
On Instagram @ginadalessandroart, at Blush Retail Gallery in Albany, Gallery Aura in Kojonup, Ningaloo Inspired in Exmouth and Repeat Offender in Subiaco.
I’m also in the Melville Art Awards on until 20th November, it’s a similar piece that’s a different type of eucalyptus.
Why did you choose this piece of artwork for the cup?
It’s bright and colourful!
People often drink coffee in the morning, they might be a little bit moody but when they grab their coffee they might see the artwork and think “that’s pretty” and it puts a smile on their face. Flowers always make me happy so I hope this makes someone else happy and adds a bit of colour to their morning.
I’ve always been drawn to flowers, to leaves, to trees and I love gardening. I love how plants attract birds, bees and insects. I love them in their environment, it’s incredibly fascinating. They’re living things and they’re all so different.
Corymbia are dancing flowers, when they blow in the wind, they’re just so pretty and they put on a show. They really do. This tree here was just a mass of flowers. When I first saw this tree, it was full of flowers and bees and I just knew I had to stop the car and get a photo of it.
You can see a whole lifecycle in this picture. Creating a mass of colour. I keep the dead leaves & gum nuts in the painting too because they’re a part of the plants cycle and offer more beauty and realness to the picture.
What is the story behind this piece of art?
We try to travel around WA quite a bit. I go down to Dunsborough 2-3 times a year, I go to Albany 2-3 times to drop paintings off, I often visit my sister in Manjimup and I love going up to Ledge Point & Exmouth too. Every trip I take, my camera is with me to take photos of flowers I see along the way. I bring the pictures back home and paint them.
For this painting, it was a family trip to Esperance. I love going down South. We hadn’t been to Esperance in a long time. And although the drive was a bit long, we can’t complain as there’s so much to see along the way. I was surprised to see so many wildflowers, especially considering it was during the dry time of the year. There were so many to look at.
Whilst we were in Esperance, we were in the car driving out to Cape Le Grand National Park and Lucky Bay when these trees caught my eye. I said “stop the car! Stop the car!” and we pulled over so I could take pictures of these amazing Corymbia trees. The first time I saw this tree was in Dunsborough and it was the white flowering gums in full bloom in Bunuru, the hottest time of the year. This one was pink and right beside it was another red one. I was in heaven.
On this trip, I took over 100 photos just of flowers. The flower gets me first and then you look closer and see more beauty. The leaves, the buds. I think it’s important to paint from my own photos, that’s what makes my art my own. I mainly paint WA flora. I also get a lot of images from my own garden, my neighbour’s garden, always on my walks as well as Kings Park and Wireless Hill are more beautiful places. Kings Park was really where I took inspiration for my first paintings. You don’t have to go far to see such beautiful plants.
What appealed to you about this project?
All people – who love coffee – can now see amazing artwork. It’s great exposure for the artist to get their artwork out to people who might not have had the opportunity to see the art otherwise.
There are such amazing artists who have been a part of this project too. I feel lucky to have been chosen. A big thank you to Karvan for supporting artists through this project.
Plus, it’s great to see your artwork on a cup! On something tangible that you use everyday. That’s really quite exciting.
Why is it important to support the arts?
Because it’s everywhere. It’s every part of life whether we’re aware of it or not. Life would be pretty boring without art, without all the many art forms and without being creative.
And anyone can do it! So many people are creative and they don’t know it. You never know what talent you have. If you simply sit down and you show up, you will surprise yourself. That’s all I try to do.
People can get involved in the arts by visiting local exhibitions, the Art Gallery of WA, music gigs & concerts. There’s lots of public events, like Sculptures by the Sea. Mural Art is everywhere now. Design & architecture is all around us. When you begin to look for art, you’ll see it’s everywhere.
