DRAWING inspiration from her children, local artist Carly Marchment is gaining momentum and recognition as an artist of note.
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Born in Kempsey and now living in Crescent Head, Carly has been creating art from a very young age. First picking up a pencil at the age of three and from five years old sketching faces and the human form.
Carly secured a scholarship at the end of her schooling to study for a Bachelor of Visual Arts in Fine Arts at Griffith University on the Gold Coast. She had several solo exhibitions and won a number of awards from exhibitions such as the Yeppoon Art Show in Queensland and the Adelaide Swift Memorial Art Show in South West Rocks.
Her work has also been hung in the prestigious Camberwell Art Show in Melbourne.
Carly put her career on hold when she started her own family.
Like many young mothers, her time and energy completely focussed on her small children. A lengthy sabbatical followed but thanks to encouragement from her partner and family, Carly began to put her talents to work again.
It has been almost a year since Carly made a successful comeback with her first solo exhibition.
Carly revived her career by showcasing a body of work from the last six years of her life titled “Progressions”.
This evocative body of work focuses on human portraiture – including her six-year-old daughter Frankie and three-year-old son Cassidy, as well as other subjects.
“My children have inspired me to draw again, I would just sketch their faces for hours and hours,” Ms Marchment said.
Carly said her return to art wasn’t an easy journey; she has had to overcome the debilitating disease, muscular dystrophy, which has become so bad she has had to change the way she paints.
“I thought as the disease progressed my art would suffer, but I have found that my art is its own saviour because I find ways around the degenerative condition which causes this wastage in my arms, hands and legs,” she said.
“I have to push the boundaries, which has been a blessing in a way as it’s made me better.”
While it is a progressive disease that will worsen in years to come Carly doesn’t think about never painting again.
“Fatigue and pain is something I deal with on a daily basis and I do what I can when I can.” she said.
“But I don’t think about if I can paint in the future; I live for now and painting is the best therapy ever.”
Determined not to let her disability define her, Carly jumped at the chance to exhibit her work at the Gladstone Regional Gallery.
“The intention of my work is to invoke a sense of intense vulnerability and beauty,” she said. “I want the subject to engage, stimulate and provoke the viewer, yet allow them to make their own interpretation and connection.”
Whilst initially her daughter Frankie was her muse. “Her many moods drive me to capture her uniqueness and her deep personality.” said Carly.
Carly’s partner and also her lifelong best friend have also been subjects of her work.
The artwork called “Waiting for Sadie” has received much acclaim. Perfectly capturing the mixed emotions of excitement and longing that is often experienced during the final stages of pregnancy.
“This image was done entirely with my left hand. I didn’t realise until I was explaining the process to someone once I had finished that I had used my none dominant hand to do the whole picture. My right arm is hugely aff ected by FSHD (a form of muscular dystrophy), so switching from left to right was something I have been doing for a while but not to this extent. It was a great moment when I realised my body just figured out another way of doing things.” said Carly.
The last year has been busy for Carly. Notably, there was a solo exhibition at Nexus Gallery Bellingen for the whole of July. A piece of her work was selected to be hung in Northern Exposure 4 which was held at The Glasshouse in Port Macquarie and was viewed by over 5,700 people.
A Highly Commended award in the Drawing section of the Bellingen art prize.
Carly also completed two commission pieces and is currently working on another commission and her next body of work.
Whilst Carly no longer works as a teaching assistant, so she can focus on her art, she can still be found giving swimming lessons at the Crescent Head pool, her other labour of love.
Carly’s work is on display throughout the Mid North Coast:
• Blackhole, Bellingen
• Sunset Gallery, Port Macquarie
• Masterpiece Framing, Port Macquarie
• Wonderland Framing and Gallery, Kempsey
• The Old Lodge Gallery, Gladstone
More information on Carly’s work can be found at Instagram- carlyinart or Facebook @carlymarchmentartist