I used to spend more time painting with more mess to worry about before using paint pens

Adrienne shares her lifelong passion for art, especially her love for painting Australian wildflowers and dogs. Challenges like homelessness and a divorce didn't deter her; instead, she founded "Wooftees" to paint pet portraits on t-shirts and bags for animal shelters and sold them to raise funds. SurfPaints allow her to make bold, expressive marks without the mess associated with traditional paints.1. Can you provide us with a brief background on your journey as an artist and tell us what you're currently working on in the world of art? Since childhood, I've had a passion for drawing and painting, especially Australian wildflowers and dogs. Despite being discouraged from pursuing art professionally, I dove into it full-time in my 50s. Starting "Wooftees," a small business painting pet portraits on apparel, I also studied Visual Arts and briefly attended QUT. Life threw challenges my way—I became homeless after my marriage ended abruptly, focusing on painting animal portraits for shelters. While my large canvas dreams are on hold due to space constraints, I'm exploring miniatures and unique formats like wearable earrings. Though sales are slow due to the economy, I continue painting for joy, exhibiting locally and doing commissions. Storage space for my ever-growing collection remains a delightful challenge.2. We'd love to know how you came across SurfPaints. What aspects of SurfPaints do you find most appealing or inspiring for your art?I saw SurfPaints on Facebook and was instantly smitten. I love bright, bold colors, and these promised me all I could want – permanent and easy painting in the colors I love. I first bought the fluorescents and the large pens but have since ordered more sets and am waiting for them to arrive to finish my current paintings. Actually, I had hit a bit of a hiatus with my art and had felt very unmotivated, but the SurfPaints have zinged me back into action.

3. Every artist faces unique challenges in their projects. Could you share specific challenges you've encountered in your art projects and how SurfPaints have been a helpful resource in overcoming these challenges?I need to feel free to make very expressive marks without constraint. I'm too messy to do that with paints; it goes everywhere, and I hate cleaning up. This is why I was drawn to SurfPaints. I can make big, bold marks on paper, wood, canvas, wherever I like, with no mess. Also, I am not a 'delicate flower' kind of person. I don’t have much in the way of subtlety in my world—or rather, of course, as a person, I do, but as an artist, I need to let go and be vibrant and huge. I need bright colors. I need to paint happiness and exuberance, as expressed by dogs and flowers.

4. Your painting projects are all unique and have captured our attention. Could you share with us your most favourite project and how you came up with the idea?

I would like to paint on so many surfaces, and I find that SurfPaints offer me the opportunity to do so without the mess of traditional paints. I am a very, very, very messy painter, and paint gets everywhere – in my hair, on my face, on the floor – and I get annoyed cleaning up. This is another great reason for choosing SurfPaints; they are much less messy and easier to tidy up after. No need to wash brushes, especially when I use oils; it’s a lot of work after painting, which I love, to clean up, which I do not like at all. Also, the large nib SurfPaints give me enormous pleasure because I can make these huge marks so easily. I wish I could share the happiness that suffuses my whole being when I can make these huge, bold strokes onto paper and canvas.

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5. As an experienced artist, do you have any valuable tips or techniques that you could share with others interested in creating painting projects with SurfPaints?

Play with art, paints, prints, wool—any way you like—all day, every day. There are so many ways to make art. If it gives you pleasure, do it. I don’t just paint; I design tapestries and create them. The motto is: The Bigger, The Bolder, The Better. It's only when I let go and paint in my own way—using a big brush, which wasn’t something I learned to enjoy with oils—that I feel fulfilled and connected to the awesome pleasure that painting what I love gives me. Some people like to create very detailed paintings, almost like photographs. That’s not who I am; that’s what cameras are for. Art is for expressing the zing of life, in my view. I paint happiness. I paint with exuberance.

Art by Adrienne Isnard

Bonus Question:
As an artist, what message or piece of advice would you like to impart to other artists at all levels, from beginners to seasoned professionals, who are passionate about expressing themselves through this medium?

Follow your heart. Sometimes it's good to try out a whole host of different mediums to express yourself, and sometimes it's okay not to know what you want, or how to get it. Explore and enjoy the journey of developing what makes you, you, and what you wish to paint, design, create.