Korynn Morrison

Korynn Morrison is an Australian born contemporary painter living and working in the southern suburbs of Sydney.

Timeless, tactile and seductive, Morrison’s Excavated Landscapes are a truly magnetic experience.

Her mission is to make work that encourages people to stand still. Paintings that unravel themselves over time, giving the viewer permission to claim their moment of pause in a world so fast paced.

From a very early age Morrison understood that colour filled in the blanks for the feelings she couldn’t explain. Still to this day she says that colour is often the starting point to her inspiration.

“Colour speaks in many volumes and creates a variety of conversations across the surface of a painting. Colour blocking my compositions from the bones up and strategically planning how each colour communicates on top of one another has formed a methodology to bring depth and dimension to my compositions.”

Litre upon litre of paint, each colour building on the last, she forms a history upon the surface of each panel, before finally burying her entire composition beneath a thick final coat. This performative burial phase has become a ritual of Morrison’s practice.

Process is the heartbeat that gives life to Morrison’s work.

“My greatest fear is the path of predictability, so I gravitate towards methods of creation that carry huge risks. The risk creates tension, and the tension forces me to remain on the edge of growth. Each time I bury a painting, I receive a magical surge of childlike energy. The seemingly blank textured surface gives me permission to look at the painting with a fresh set of eyes.”

When she revisits her paintings for what she calls “The Excavation” she often says that she has forgotten what lies beneath the surface. This phase is like starting all over again, but instead of a brush she uses power tools.

“From here I leave the work to chance, slowly excavating from the surface through to the bones of my landscape, re-curating the composition as I go. This process is as much about what is hidden as is what is revealed. Knowing where to stop is always the hardest part.”

Her performative process reveals a rich history of perfect imperfection that gives endless depth to the two-dimensional surface.

Her paintings are created in collaboration with life. Fuelled by risk and the pure joy felt whilst walking and drawing within the Australian landscape, a true legacy of what it means to be stubborn in service of pure passion.

VIEW SHORT FILM ABOUT KORYNN’S PRACTICE HERE.