Summary
In this interview, Ellis O’Connor reflects on her artistic journey and the evolution of her style. She explains that although her early art education focused on life drawing and figurative work, she was always more inspired by the natural environment. Spending time outdoors, especially in the Scottish Highlands, became both a personal and creative necessity, shaping her focus on landscapes and environmental themes.
Over time, her work has grown increasingly abstract, moving from observational and print-based studies of rocks and landforms to expressive, intuitive interpretations of nature. She describes her color palette as something that evolves organically rather than by conscious choice, often influenced by her surroundings, travels, and personal growth.
Ultimately, O’Connor emphasizes the importance of change and evolution in her art. She resists creative stagnation or self-definition by a single style, wanting her work—and herself—to remain fluid, reflective of ongoing transformation and connection with the environment.
TRANSCRIPT
Yeah, I've definitely always been drawn to creating paintings of the environment and like my more abstract expression towards them. I think that like when I was younger, especially in like high school and like early on in art school, it was very much taught to create more paintings and drawings of people and like observational drawing, all that kind of stuff, but I wasn’t that interested. Like I feel like in art school you have to do so much life drawing, which is great to get that observational drawing and to be able to have that detail and the eye for light and tone and all of those things, but I never felt I enjoyed it to an extent, but I didn't have a lot of patience for it.
And then I think when I was in art school, probably around second year, was when I started going up north a lot more often — like going to both, climbing up Monrose, just being outside as much as possible. And I realized like, well, of course, that goes hand in hand. I'm going to want to create art from what it is that inspires me. And that's always been being outside in the environment because it helps my brain. It helps me slow down. It makes me feel more alive and calm.
So again, it felt like this feeling of like, well, that makes sense. I like being outdoors as much as possible. I need to paint. I don't want to do anything else. So they have to go hand in hand. And they feed off one another. So yeah, it definitely felt like when I was in art school, any chance I got, I would go up north or go to the Highlands. And then it just felt like very natural to always just be creating work about the environment.
And then it became more and more abstract. I would do a lot more life drawing— not life drawing, I would do a lot more line drawing and printmaking, like more of up-close rocks and land formations in second and third year. And then I think since art school, it's become more and more abstract just naturally.
Yeah, the palettes developed over time again very naturally. I think, yeah, it's quite a difficult question to answer because I don't really feel like that's been a conscious choice to use the palettes I've used. It just feels natural to use certain colors. I go through phases where before, like a few years ago, I was always wanting to paint in blue and that was like my hyperfocus color for a while because I do get very obsessed with certain colors.
And then I realized, okay, like I felt like I was boxing myself in with that and I wanted to grow and change inevitably as we all should as humans and artists. And then that's really grown over time. And I think it's just from growing as a person. So my art is going to reflect that and communicate that growth within myself, but also in terms of the colors changing as well.
It's been a very natural development in traveling, going to new places, experiencing new cultures, experiencing new environments, and then that's been reflected in my artwork. So I really don't feel like that palette choice has been such a conscious decision, like I'm going to work with green all the time. It's just naturally happened.
And I hope it always changes and flows and my palette always changes and my style always changes because I never want to just turn out work, and I never want to be an artist who boxes myself into being like, this is all I do forever now. Like I hope it always changes because I always want to change as well.
