First featured in TNZAM Series 1, Issue 4 Volume 4, Lynne Sinclair Taylor has come a long way in the past five years. She is a self-taught artist who, before the internet was available, had many visits to the library to gain knowledge from art books on techniques and to be inspired by looking at art.
Having always been creative and drawing for as long as she can remember, Lynne won prizes as a child for colouring in and drawing. Amongst the art-related positions she has held, the one she enjoyed most was being a fashion illustrator as advertising manageress for a department store. Designing and making her own clothes for many years, she also won prizes in fashion design. Because of her love for drawing and painting, it seemed a natural progression to begin painting. “I am a realist at heart and I began with drawing and painting people’s portraits. When I was on a ferry on the Mediterranean in my youth, I started sketching people and before I knew it, I had people requesting their portraits and ended up sketching nine portraits!” Early in her career, inspiration came from Rembrandt’s use of light and shade, Monet’s techniques and use of colour, and particularly the Fauvists for their creative use of colour. “There are many artists I admire today, too many to name. I went on my own journey with different mediums and technique and I had a passion for chalk pastels for a number of years. I also ventured into impressionism, expressionism, and abstracts. “When I first started painting seriously about 25 years ago I entered a few competitions and won five first prizes in the first five years. When I won the overall prize at the Royal Easter Show in Auckland they rang me a couple of days before the prize-giving to see if I would be present. I said I wouldn’t be attending and they strongly recommended that it would be in my best interest to attend, which I did. It was a wonderful surprise to take the overall prize. My first exhibition was in an Auckland gallery in Devonport and I was so encouraged when most of the paintings sold in one week.”
