Local artist profile: Lucrecia Lane

THIS week we chat with Flora Hill illustrator and painter Lucrecia Lane, who has recently returned to her practice after a 20-year hiatus while working in other fields and raising a family.

What motivated you to take up drawing and painting?

Art has always been a part of me, even during a 20-year hiatus while working in other fields and raising a family.

Two years ago, I found a way back through life drawing sessions with my amazing and patient friend Sarah Hansford.

She reminded me over several years of gentle persuasion that I didn’t have to be anything other than myself drawing and painting again.

Returning to art wasn’t just about picking up a pencil again; it was about reclaiming a part of myself.

How would you describe your style?

My style is rooted in exploration and intuition.

I’m fascinated by the expressive power of shape, angle and curve – especially in the human figure – and how those same elements echo in the structures we create around us.

There’s a tension I’m always chasing between abstraction and familiarity, between what we recognise and what we feel.

Which artists inspire you?

I’m inspired by the artists I’ve met through local life drawing groups – from Jane Ineson’s group where I started to the current Bendigo Artists Incorporated Go Figure Group.

I also draw inspiration from a wide range of artists, from the technical skills of the old masters to the emotionally evocative work of Susan Seddon Boulet, the luminous architectural watercolours of Thomas Schaller, and the striking, expressive styles of contemporary artists like Yuto Otsuki and Polina Bright.

Have you had any mentors over your career?

While I haven’t had formal mentors in a traditional sense, I’ve been lucky to reconnect with creativity through Sarah.

Her expressive style has always captured my interest and her transition to graduating watercolours is truly beautiful.

Beyond that, Shaun Clarke and Lyn Raymer (from Go Figure) both shared valuable skills and experience that have benefited me immensely in refining my creative methods.

My mentors are more often, bodies, moments, and mistakes – all of which continue to teach me in the moments I’m creating.

What are some highlights you have from your time as an artist so far?

A highlight has been simply returning to art.

There’s a moment when something magical happens – there’s no hesitation, everything flows without fear or perfectionism.

What happens instead is the capturing of the moment – the curves and angles become feelings on the paper, flowing together.

How can people check out your work online?

I have just begun to share my work on Instagram @lucreciafaeartist

It’s a space where I post both finished pieces, works-in-progress and quick sketches.

What are you working on right now?

(This is) a time of creative expansion for me, and I’m trying to stay open to where the process takes me.

I have several plans in the works for the next 24 months both in terms of projects as well as the direction I’m moving into with artistic exploration.

What would you say to young regional aspiring illustrators/painters who are thinking of making a go of the creative life?

Don’t wait for permission – start with what you have, where you are.

Regional or not, your perspective is valuable.

It’s okay to be scared – that just means you care.

Keep making, keep looking, keep learning.

There’s no “right” path into art, I took a 20-year detour and still found my way back.

Every drawing is a step forward.