Amanda Schunker

"'Common Ground' explores the messy, energetic way different paths eventually meet. Instead of a single, straight line, the painting follows the beauty of meandering—taking the long way or the wrong turn yet showing up together. It’s a joyous calamity of color and movement, a place to coexist," says Amanda Schunker.

Schunker's work navigates the intersection of a complex multicultural heritage, shaped by Chinese, Indian, and European lineages across England and Australia, and the raw, indifferent endurance of the natural world. Schunker seeks a practice that is unbound—free from cultural restraints, the historical weight of ancestral bound feet, and the internal prejudices we impose upon ourselves.

To paint abstracted rock formations 'en plein air' is to enter a non-denominational sanctuary: a space that belongs to no one and everyone. Time in the field serves as the essential substrate of Schunker’s practice, through which she captures the “bones” of the work. These outdoor sessions are a pursuit of neutrality, painting without borders to remain as unattached as possible, yet responsive to a multitude of triggers found in nature.