Honouring nature, one intricate stroke at a time

Some of Anglesea artist Brittany March’s earliest memories are about a love of the natural world.

When she was a child, this manifested in a fascination with bugs, and quickly expanded to include the birds and marine life her fine art practice now meticulously captures, layer upon layer, in hyper-realism.

A life lived in and around the ocean – fishing, boating, surfing – has only served to strengthen March’s relationship with the world around her.

“I’ve always been that little weird kid that’s really into animals,” March said.

 

 

“I think I just like to honour wildlife and the natural world and portray its beauty for what it is.

“I really enjoy that when people look at my work, they notice all the intricacies in the natural world that I see, and it brings them joy.”

Her process begins with the study of several reference images, followed by a preliminary sketch forming the bones of the illustration. A base layer then provides the foundation for her detail-oriented craft, as she works, often over months, to painstakingly create pieces that are imbued with personality and life.

“I often get asked how long pieces take, and it wouldn’t be uncommon to spend 50 hours+ on a piece,” March said.

 

 

“That time flies by though because drawing/painting is quite meditative and therapeutic. It’s my time I dedicate to being still, calm and focused.”

Aided by a telephoto lens, March prefers to collect these reference images herself as she searches the Great Ocean Road, its surrounds and even her own backyard for her next subject.

She’s hoping to eventually invest in the gear required to begin taking her own underwater photographs.

Armed with a background in design and a growing feeling of dissatisfaction in her former job, March launched her own business in 2019, splitting her time between her fine art creations and graphic design work with a client-base of local businesses.

 

 

“It actually gives me quite a good balance because I’ve been doing the design work for over 10 years. It comes pretty intuitively to me now and I do really enjoy working with local brands and connecting with local people,” she said.

“Not all graphic designers are artists, and not all artists are designers. I think it’s good to have skills in both that can complement each other.”

She also understands better than most the challenges that come with stepping out on your own.

“When I first started working for myself, I was probably ignorant even of how difficult it could be. Had I known the challenges I was going to face upfront, I might not have decided to do it, but I’m super glad I did,” she shares.

 

 

“You don’t know what you don’t know until you know it… but being resilient and being able to think creatively is definitely important.

“I think anyone that runs a small business knows that it’s not always easy, but if you can make it work, it’s pretty rewarding.”

For those interested in making a similar leap, March has some tough, but necessary advice: “If you’re not prepared to give it a really good go and if you’re not prepared to be knocked down and get back up – to have resilience and keep trying – then it’s probably not the avenue for you”.

More than five years on, March finds herself in another state of transition, as she works towards establishing a new studio space, away from the Ashmore Arts creative hub where she made her start, and her art practice evolves to include new challenges.

 

 

Among these is a recent shift into sculptural pieces able to convey the same depth and detail as her 2D works.

“I’m still really obsessed with details, so I feel that my process does involve still studying the form and being quite critical about getting the anatomy correct,” March said.

“It’s still quite detailed and complex, which is sort of just my personality, I guess.”

She’s also eyeing opportunities to experiment with large-scale murals, while her books remain open for commissions, including carefully composed custom pet portraits.

For more, head to brittanymarch.com.au or follow @artbybrittanymarch on Instagram.