“This body of work comes from a connection to the water’s edge. I’m drawn to the chaotic line and frantic energy of the mangroves.....a place that is buzzing with energy. This body of work is about pushing the image. 

My paintings are process based. Made up of many layers my surfaces reveal a sense of time and depth through the act of scraping into, painting over and drawing on top. They are excavations, palimpsests of how I see the natural world” Leah Thiessen

"How does one distill the essence of the great mysteries and complexities of nature and our fundamental connection to it.  Its harshness, its power and the joy it gives.  Some places invite me in- the dry, dehydrated areas of Australia, where the colour is worn to the surface, shapes lowered down into patterns that surprise.  Vegetation surviving on barrenness. Its unexpectedly alive…. The occasional remnants of a long gone storm. Wait for the silence. A white tree against the orange startles. A zebra finch calls.  Water is near.  An early morning symphony from the butcher bird. Layers, Memories and Imagination." Sally Stokes