Painter, mother, intuitive maker.

Artist Talk is a series by Densi where we speak with artists about the intersections of life and practice. As artists ourselves, these conversations are an ongoing way of understanding how creativity takes root, and how we can continue to cultivate its power. 

Artist Loralee Jade's practice and process remind us that creativity is not separate from life: it grows through the same cycles of loss, care, and renewal. Her story reflects one of Densi's guiding ideas: that artistic growth depends on access and support, especially for those whose creative paths exist alongside caregiving.

On inspiration  – 

“I’m forever searching for imagery to fill my brain.”

Loralee keeps books around her at all times - novels, poetry, art books, magazines - alongside old family photographs she returns to often. She rarely goes looking for something specific; it’s more what she calls ‘passive collecting’. “Somehow the imagery I attract or am attuned to feels thematic,” she says. “If there is a strong thread hovering around me I’ll do some research and read some theory or fiction around it to see why or what is trying to connect with me.”

On motherhood – 

"Nothing comes close to the transformation that is becoming a mother - it's not just one moment but an accumulation of shifts and tension. A constant forging into something new, something more."

A year of motherhood has propelled Loralee further into the exploration of feminist theory, specifically ideas about the monstrous woman. From ancient mythology to the cultural anxieties about female power. The transformation has her meditate on what it means to be a woman; “the ways in which daily moments are actually the monumental foundations for a life. Domestic rituals, the nurturing, the held and the holding, what it means to take up space and to share space.”

On the unexpected – 

“Within the deepest folds of grief. When you’re faced with such intense emotion that creativity feels so so far from reach and yet it’s right there with you. The sharpest bolts of inspiration have found me in the darkest of places.”

Loralee has always loved drawing, spending hours as a young child copying images from books. The sudden death of her stepdad in Loralee’s teenage years had a profound impact on her formative practice; “my then teacher took me in and guided me into the world of art. She showed me how artists used what happened to them in their lives to make their work. Not just for an audience but for themselves.” Art as a tool to process grief became a necessity - “needing somewhere to not only put all the emotion but also to understand it. A way of witnessing yourself in conversation with the external world.” Her practice has been a sacred place ever since. She went on to study at VCA, graduating with a BFA in painting.

On emotion – 

“I have this space around me that involuntarily shuts out the external world. My painting practice exists within this space.”

For Loralee, emotion is inescapable. “My mum used to always say that I lived in a bubble, that a war could break out in the room and I’d have no idea. It’s as if, if I let too much of the world into my bubble the work becomes clouded. So I suppose for me, it’s more about shielding my art in its creation, from the ways that I see and interact with the world.” 

On exploration-

"Exploration is vital to my practice. It's really all I'm doing in the studio."

Loralee's process is an ongoing dialogue between her internal landscape and the outside world - "seeing how it reacts to foreign objects such as theory, another body, a perspective shift or a line of prose. If I'm going about my job with honesty, new materials and ways of working should always be coming through." The memories she keeps returning to in the studio are the same ones she keeps returning to in life: "the loss of my stepdad. The fields of wildflowers at our family farm where we used to camp. Looking for shooting stars. Floating down the river with my cousins and siblings."

On residency –

“ A lot of the time they feel so out of reach for me logistically”

Residencies have always been something Loralee has wanted to pursue - and something that has, so far, felt out of reach. As a solo mum, the barriers are specific: the logistics are hard, and family-friendly accommodation is rarely part of the offering. It’s a gap that points to something larger, that the structures around residencies often weren’t designed with caregivers in mind, and that access to creative development isn’t equally available to everyone.

Images supplied by Loralee Jade

See more of Loralee's work - here