Statement - 2024

Natalie Brake’s abstract paintings come from a place of multiple identities: her mixed heritage of Pakistani, European and Mi’kmaq First Nation, in combination with her artistic credentials in dance. Her desire for expression flows in a visual language that simultaneously evokes vibrancy and serenity, resembling characteristics of her main source of inspiration: nature. Due to the diversity of her unique cultural makeup, she finds her deepest sense of self and home in the outdoors, which she considers the one attribute of connection that all cultures share. She communicates this comfort through her art.

Brake’s arrangement of acrylics, fluid paints and epoxy resin map out a landscape of ineffable sentiments. Her use of mediums is said to feel like a visual orchestra conductor directing certain instruments to crescendos in order to both bring forth and contrast the melodies. There are elements of atmospheric and classical music in her style, reaching beyond colour and brush strokes arrangement to a grander scheme of visual storytelling.

Ceaselessly fascinated by the night sky, Brake’s Luminescence works reference phosphorescent light in the ocean and starlight. Offering dual perspectives, these works can be viewed in the daytime and in the dark, offering different visual experiences. In her luminescent works, Brake employs a powerful combination of colours and contrasts, resulting in an alluring effect. Viewed under a blacklight, the canvases fall into a deep darkness while the iridescence blossoms forth, evoking fascination from the viewers.

Brake’s technique, process and choice of medium also reflect her background in dance. Adhering to the creative expression of movement, Brake has a particular method when it comes to using resin that values its sculptural and precise effects. She integrates resin into her paintings, sometimes by combining it with other mediums, other times using it alone. In particular, while the resin is curing she observes the phases of hardening it undergoes as indicators for how she would like to use it as a medium.

Her works have been exhibited extensively in Victoria, B.C., and internationally in Europe and Mexico. Recent projects include 2 paintings commissioned by the former Head Scientist of the Canadian Space Agency, various abstract works for "The Agency" in Victoria, BC, and commissioned work for the Meade Design Group.

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~written by the creative team of Dazed and Confuscious