Natasha Walsh is one of Australia’s most exciting emerging artists. A few months ago, over a period of about 12 weeks, she won three prestigious art awards; the Kilgour Prize, the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship and the Mosman Art Prize.
She’s also been a finalist in the Archibald Prize for the last 3 years in a row with stunning self portraits. And she’s only 24.
But the road to this success has not been smooth. Experiencing dyslexia as a child, she struggled both academically and socially in her early years and had to learn strategies to fit in. There’s also been an intermittent struggle with depression and she speaks openly about those experiences and how they have impacted her fascinating self portraits.
Painting on canvas has never really interested her. She’s more interested in transforming materials into ideas. Those materials have ranged from wax and copper to marble.
Walsh displays wisdom beyond her years and it was great to meet her.
