07/10/2026
Meet the artists behind ‘echo’
Melissa Clayton-Smythe Melissa Clayton-Smythe
Deeply influenced by a Melbourne upbringing in a highly creative household, I was raised to perceive the world through an artistic lens. While my professional path has spanned several diverse fields, art has remained my enduring passion and constant underlying current. In 2022, a profound shift in life circumstances granted me the dedicated time and space to formalise my creative practice, marking the official beginning of my dedicated artistic journey.
I am instinctively drawn to the raw elements of the natural world—the movement of water, the permanence of mountains, the textures of trees, grasses, rocks, and flora, and the fleeting way light casts shadows across a landscape. Rather than replicating a photorealistic view, my practice strives to capture the sensory essence of a location. Each painting is an intimate attempt to translate a singular moment in time where I experienced a deep sense of peace and connection with the environment, offering that felt emotion back to the viewer.
My creative process begins en plein air, fueled by travels across the diverse Australian landscape. Armed with a lifelong love of drawing, my sketchbook is the birthplace of every concept. I gather sensory and visual data through immediate photography and on-site sketches utilizing gouache, pencils, inks, oils, and pastels. These field notes serve as the foundational jumping-off point for my compositions, palettes, and gestural marks.
Upon returning to the studio, these initial impressions are translated into larger-scale works using oil paints and oil sticks. In this space, I intentionally move away from literal reality—manipulating composition and proportion to distill the pure emotion, atmosphere, and memory of the place.
Exhibition runs | 2 – 13 October 2026
Fri - Sun: 10pm – 4pm
