FIONA DEMPSTER

I respond to quiet art. I like artwork that doesn't shout; artwork that is calm and quietly draws you in and asks you to spend some time with it. My art encourages the viewer to be intimate with the work and to have a one on one experience with it; to be drawn into it's world, often quietly and slowly.

My work explores themes and ideas about peace and meditation, about reflection and introspection and about journey and place. I use text, words and images to express sentiments, feelings, thoughts and beliefs. I believe that in sharing these thoughts and inspirations in a beautiful and creative way we encourage peace and calm in our every day lives.

FIONA DEMPSTER - BIOGRAPHY

Fiona Dempster is a calligraphic and book artist based in Maleny, in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. She loves books, words, marks and text, and her work is generally elegant, spare and restrained; seeking the essence of things rather than an elaborate and complex expression of them.

Fiona has studied calligraphy since she was a child and has developed fine skills in both calligraphy and as a bookmaker. Her work is often paper-based and takes the form of books; however, more recently she has begun working with metal, timber and Perspex to express words and texts in ways that take calligraphy off the page and into the outdoors.

In addition to her studio work Fiona also teaches calligraphy and book-making to both adults and children. She has exhibited in joint exhibitions with her husband Barry Smith and in group exhibitions, across Australia.

Fiona was a finalist in the 2010 Libris Book Awards and her work is held in private collections in Australia and Japan.