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Lisette Forsyth
  • Favourites
  • Available Art
  • International
    • Portugal Series & Upcoming Exhibition
    • Cuba 2018
    • New York Series
    • Central America
    • Nothing in India
  • Exhibitions
    • Women of the world
    • Land- Exhibition 2019
    • Portugal Series & Upcoming Exhibition
    • BRKLYN Spring Exhibition 2017
    • Love thy neighbour
    • Nothing in India
    • Honest day’s work
    • Usual Suspects
    • Means to an end 2013
    • Urban Scenes
    • Public City
    • Exinhibition
    • Intimacy Exhibition 2020
  • Earlier Work
    • 2018
      • 2018 Art
      • Transmutation
    • 2017
      • Art 2017
      • Drawing 2017
      • Collaborative works 2017
    • 2016
      • New Artwork 2016
      • Alternative Art 2016
      • Music & Lyrics
      • Government Gazette 2016
      • Ladies First
    • 2015
      • Latest work 2015
      • Other news
      • Love thy neighbour
      • Nothing in India
      • Government Gazette 2015
      • Life Drawings 2015
      • Early 2015
    • 2014
      • Late 2014
      • Drawings 2014
      • Cape TImes
      • Government Gazette
      • Usual Suspects
      • New Work 2014
    • 2013
      • Artwork 2013
      • Means to an end 2013
      • Honest day’s work
      • Alternative Art 2013
      • Life Drawings 2013
    • 2012
      • 2012 Paintings
      • 2012 Alternative Art
      • More Drawings 2012
      • Early Alternative Art
      • Early Acrylic Paintings & Drawings
      • Early Sketches & Life Class
      • Art-Toon
      • Graphic
      • Mixed Media
      • Natural Studies
      • Palette Knife
      • Urban Scenes
      • Modern
      • Soft
      • Photos
  • StudioTonic
    • Studio Tonic 2015
    • Studio Tonic 2014
    • Studio Tonic 2013
    • Early Studio Tonic
    • Visiting Artists
  • Lisette
    • Lisette CV
    • Timeline
    • Creative Philosophy
    • Philosophical Underpinnings of Lisette’s Current Artistic Identity
  • Contact

Available Art

Pedestrian // A collaborative artwork; acrylic on original wood. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
STAY SAFE // ink and acrylic on recycled surface. Framed original available at Manz Art, Franschhoek.

VARIOUS INDIVIDUAL PIECES

Most of the pieces found bellow are available at various galleries within South Africa, many at my Art Studio in Woodstock. As will become apparent, Lisette enjoys using a variety of recycled surfaces as her canvases. Taking inspiration from not only her surroundings but from the surfaces themselves she is able to create works that have a life of their own. The subject speaks to the canvas, and the canvas speaks back- opening up a channel for multidirectional dialogue which extends beyond the artwork itself.

Nuns For Nature // Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.

Lisette encourages observers to look closely at the artworks in her collection, imaginatively allowing themselves to solve the puzzles which lie beneath. There are no correct answers, and beyond creating a dialogue within her art she hopes to create a dialogue between her art and its observers. Taking creative liberties will allow her audience to explore the subjective meaning they project onto her work, and may well allow them to reverse the gaze and explore the origin of such projections within themselves. 

Rhodesia, where to from here?
Rhodesia, where to from here? // Acrylic on historic map; size 90 x 72 cm. Framed semi-original available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Still life, available at Studio Tonic.
1st of May // Acrylic and ink on historic newspaper, The Star 1929. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
24 Rivers // Acrylic and ink on historic newspaper, The Cape of Good Hope Government Gazette. Available at Studio Tonic.
Sounding in Fathoms
Sounding in Fathoms // Life Drawing; 66 x 99 cm. Available at Studio Tonic.
Deep Low
Deep Low // Acrylic on historic map; 30 x 43 cm. Available at Studio Tonic.
Interior
Interior // Acrylic on historic map; 30 x 43 cm. Available at Studio Tonic.
Bars

Bars // Life drawing; 59 x 84 CM. Available at Stateoftheart.

Cotton and Wool // Acrylic on historic Government Gazette; size 42 x 29.5 cm. Available at Manz Art, Franschhoek.
Leap of Faith
Leap of Faith // Found wooden wheel; 180 x 180 cm. Available at Manz Art, Franschhoek.
Fresh Fish // Acrylic on historic Cape Times; size 50 x 68.5 cm. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Just Like New // Acrylic on historic Cape Times; size 50 x 68.5 cm. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Still life, available at Studio Tonic.

INTIMACY

Intimacy manifest itself in an endless variety of intra-personal and interpersonal relationships. Be it the unconditional love a mother has for her child, the companionship between man and his pet, classic romantic love, or the self-love we all hope to both attain and retain. For how can we love others if we know not yet how to love ourselves. Love thyself, and be loved.

Minor Alterations // This piece forms part of an exhibition titled “Intimacy” which explores the meaning of intimacy through an exploration of its diverse manifestations.
First intimacy // 100 x 85cm
Lasting intimacy // (Lisbon) 51 x39 cm

Intimacy exhibition 2020


CUBA SERIES

Cuba // Acrylic on map of Cuba. Available at Stateoftheart Gallery, Cape Town.
Junior // Prints available
Senior // Prints available

HOOKED

Taking a dramatic turn back to still life amidst an explosion of art created around the human subject can be a challenge for any artist, but Lisette believes that it is important to incorporate diversity into her artistic process if she wishes to keep her artistic expression exciting and current.

Hooked // A still life created for a still life competition run by the AVA Gallery in Cape Town. It was shortlisted and featured in their exhibition at the start of 2020.

NEW YORK COLLECTION

Poetry is as diverse and inspiring as art. During the Romantic period of human creativity and innovation it was Wordsworth who described poetry as “the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility.” Following such a definition much the same is true of art, and certainly of the art Lisette creates. 

Her Goal is to experience life fully present, to absorb the smells, sights, sounds, feelings and atmosphere around her at all times. This is particularly true of her time spent traveling. As such, most of the art you find in this collection takes inspiration from Lisette’s lived experiences whilst on the go, unable to document in real time the emotions and imaginative ramblings they evoke. Thus, it is in tranquility and upon reflection that such things, such feelings and emotions flood her brain and overflow onto the canvases before her, the result being art of a poetic nature.  

Making Mockers Meek // Framed original available at Manz Art, Franschhoek
Superman // Framed original available at Studio Tonic
Summer Bugs // Framed original available at Manz Art, Franschhoek
Spell Poverty // Framed original available at Studio Tonic

Love yOUR mOTHER

The goal of much of Lisette’s later work has been social, political and cultural commentary. The point of this is not to shame and vilify groups of people or the system at large, but rather to productively build society up by drawing attention to largely under-appreciated or misunderstood aspects of our modern world.

The environment has been a passionate focus of Lisette’s during the year 2020, and the piece bellow seeks to illustrate a fundamental aspect of climate change and global warming overlooked by most. This being that our relationship to the environment is a reflection of our relationship with ourselves and others. “love yOUR mOTHER” is the title of this artwork, and draws attention to the highly personal bond that humans in fact have with the natural environment. We are a product of the natural world, just as we are our own mothers whom brought us into this world, and we should thus love, protect and defend this earth as we would our own mothers. We cannot function without the life supporting systems of this planet, and to neglect the planet is to neglect ourselves and others. If you do not love your other you cannot hope to save the environment, for without altruism the motivation to create a better future is lost.

Love your mother

love our mother

love your other.

This powerful piece has risen like a phoenix from the rubble of a society that has forgotten where it came from, and chooses to be willfully ignorant of where it is headed // found wooden surface; size 200 x 120 cm. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Paint the streets with the voices of the subjugated and the oppressed. “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Mahatma Ghandi

PORTUGAL COLLECTION

For Lisette, traveling is about collecting more than just memories and experience. On her travels she often ventures into small thrift stores and book shops, communicating with locals and interacting within their more ordinary public spaces. This allows her a small window into the nuances of their culturally determined lives, thus enhancing her ability to create art which accurately reflects their unique lived experiences. Not only does this allow Lisette to forge bonds with local citizens which often stretch across time and space beyond her travel adventures, but she is too able to collect beautiful local books, maps and other artefacts which in turn become the canvases on which she represents these people. The collection documented bellow is an example of the fruits of her creative process, both canvas and subject brining unique elements of subjective interpretation to the table. 


Nuns for Nature

Most mornings Lisette starts her day by making her way down to the beach for her daily walk and yoga, she uses this time to reconnect with herself and ground down through the earth. The stillness of the morning combined with the rhythmic beating of the ocean waves provide a meditative environment in which to tune into whats happening within and around her. During this solitary time she often experiences great insights and sets important intentions for the day ahead. Sometimes she prays, sometimes she meditates, sometimes she cries, sometimes she laughs. On more than one occasion she has emerged from her meditative state with her intentions set on helping a friend or reducing her carbon footprint, only to open her eyes and be rewarded by Mother Earth. On one such morning after contemplating the state of the environment she opened her eyes to find R200 flailing in the breeze, clinging to the damp morning sand. No more coincidences. That morning she resolved to be warrior for the world, a nun for nature.

The artwork bellow takes its inspiration from her experience of being connected to the earth in a very spiritual way. she speaks to the world and the world speaks back, sending her signs that she is on the right track.

Nuns for Nature // A piece inspired by my experience of universal love and interconnectedness with both the natural world and my fellow humans. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.

TRANSMUTATION COLLECTION

Lisette takes the discarded materials of modern work and transmutes their surfaces into artefacts with a powerful appeal to current artistic sensibilities.

“Scarred wood, rusted steel, battered metal and builder’s planks are all grist to my grinder, saw and paint brush. The story of each piece is transmutation, the outcome, I hope, is enchantment.”

– Lisette Forsyth

His and Her Perpetual Motion // 40 x 240 cm. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
National Flower // Size 110 x 125.5 cm. Available at Manz Art, Franschhoek.
Hidden Costs
Hidden Costs // Acrylic on found canvas surface; Size 2m x 1.5m. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Pedestrian // Original wooden surface, in collaboration with Mark Matthysen. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
It’s Better to Burn // Found metal surface; Size 82,5 x 246 cm. Available at Knysna Fine Art.
Flowers in The Hood
Flowers in the Hood // Car bonnet artwork; created with markers, enamel and spray-paint. Available at Manz Art, Franschhoek.
Autumn Lockdown
Autumn Lockdown // Size 108 x 132cm; Enamel on found wooden surface.
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New Shoots // found surface, original metal. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Over and Above Car Door
Over and Above // Enamel, spray paint and markers on found car door. Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.
Out of The Woods // Size 93 x 244 cm. Available at Knysna Fine Art Gallery.
Checkered Past
Checkered Past // Original metal; size 123 x 151 cm. Available at Knysna Fine Art.
Thorny Crown
Thorny Crown // Available at Studio Tonic, Woodstock.

Color me Pretty

Using an old palate and an existing stencil I bring life to what others may see as “waste”.

PRAGUE COLLECTION

Recycling existing materials is the foundation and inspiration for much of the work Lisette does. Bellow is just a small example of the variety of outcomes that can be achieved by up-cycling the discarded and disregarded “waste” material of modern society. Upon close observation it becomes evident how the subject matter speaks to the canvas, and the canvas to its subject. Lisette likes to create a dialogue with her art, allowing the subject matter and canvas not only to communicate with and enrich one another, but also to communicate with the audience, enriching their subjective understanding of what they see before them. This particular collection took its inspiration from Lisette’s travel adventures in Prague, both the canvases and subject matter being locally sourced and mindfully coupled to create thought provoking works of art. 



New York Series

Portugal Series & Upcoming Exhibition

Cuba 2018

Transmutation

The major pursuit of alchemists for millennia was the transmutation of  base metals, such as lead and tin into noble metals such as silver or gold.This concept underpins the current work of artist Lisette Forsythe who takes  the discarded materials of modern life and transmutes their surfaces into artifacts with a powerful appeal to current artistic sensibilities. Scarred wood, rusted steel, battered metal and builder’s planks are all grist to her grinder, her saw and her paint brushes. The story of each piece is transmutation, the outcome is enchantment.

Recent Posts

  • Intimacy Exhibition 2020
  • Philosophical Underpinnings of Lisette’s Current Artistic Identity
  • Women of the world
  • Available Art
  • Favourites
  • Central America
  • Land- Exhibition 2019
  • 2018 Art

INTIMACY by Lisette Forsyth

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