The Aurora Project
A Painting Journey in Curiosity, Learning and Growth
The Aurora Project is a long-term painting journey that combines two things that have fascinated me for many years: colour and the Aurora Australis.
Rather than creating a single painting, the project uses the same aurora photograph as inspiration at different points in my artistic journey. By returning to the same image over time, I can track my development as an artist and explore how my understanding of painting changes through practice, learning and experimentation.
The goal of the Aurora Project is not perfection.
The goal is growth.
Why the Aurora?
My fascination with auroras began long before I ever painted one.
As a teenager sitting in a high school geography classroom, I came across a photograph of the Aurora Borealis in a textbook. I was immediately captivated by the colours dancing across the night sky. It felt almost impossible that something so extraordinary could exist in nature.
Later, I discovered that Australia had its own aurora – the Aurora Australis.
From that moment on, I wanted to see one for myself.
The possibility of seeing an aurora became one of the reasons Tasmania held such appeal for me. After eventually moving here, it still took several years before I experienced my first aurora in person.
When it finally happened, it was absolutely worth the wait.
I remember the excitement of that evening and the sense of wonder that came with seeing something I had been fascinated by for almost forty years.
What surprised me most was that the experience didn’t satisfy my curiosity.
It deepened it.
Seeing my first aurora changed the way I look at the night sky.
Even now, I often find myself looking up when I arrive home in the evening, wondering whether aurora activity might be visible. I still enjoy following forecasts, heading out on promising nights and capturing images of something that feels both familiar and endlessly surprising.
Auroras continue to fascinate me because they combine many things I love: colour, curiosity, science, mystery and wonder.
When I began studying painting at university, they felt like the perfect subject for a long-term learning project.
The Aurora Project Inspiration
Everything in the Aurora Project begins with a single photograph.
The image was chosen before I attended my first painting class at university and has become the foundation of the project.
Rather than searching for a new subject each time, I return to the same image and paint it again. This allows the focus to remain on learning, experimentation and artistic growth rather than constantly changing subject matter.
Everything in the Aurora Project begins with a single photograph.
The image was chosen before I attended my first painting class at university and has become the foundation of the project.
Rather than searching for a new subject each time, I return to the same image and paint it again. This allows the focus to remain on learning, experimentation and artistic growth rather than constantly changing subject matter.
The original aurora photograph that inspired the Aurora Project.
The Journey So Far
Aurora #1 – February 2026
Aurora #1 was painted before I attended my first university painting class.
It was never intended to be a masterpiece.
It was intended to be a starting point.
Before beginning my painting studies, I wanted a way to document my progress over time. This first painting established a benchmark against which future versions could be compared.
Aurora #2 – June 2026
Aurora #2 was painted after completing my first semester of painting studies.
Returning to the same image revealed noticeable differences in technique, confidence, composition and approach. More importantly, it demonstrated the value of practice, experimentation and continued learning.
Side-by-Side Comparison
Placed beside one another, Aurora #1 and Aurora #2 tell a story that neither painting can tell alone.
The first painting was not a mistake to overcome.
It was a necessary part of the journey.
Without it, I would have no way of seeing what had changed.
What the Aurora Project Is Teaching Me
The Aurora Project has reinforced something I continue to discover through art, theatre and life.
Growth rarely begins with expertise.
It begins with curiosity.
Too often we wait until we feel ready before allowing ourselves to begin. We want proof that we will succeed before we are willing to try.
Learning does not work that way.
The first attempt is not there to prove what we are capable of.
It is there to give us somewhere to start.
Although the project uses an aurora as its subject, it is really about documenting growth, embracing experimentation and giving myself permission to learn.
Each new version becomes a snapshot of where I was, what I had learned and what I was curious to explore next.
The Future of the Aurora Project
Aurora #3 is planned following the completion of Painting 2 in Semester 1, 2027. Like the paintings before it, it will serve as another marker in an ongoing journey of learning, experimentation and artistic growth.
The Aurora Project will continue to evolve as my artistic practice evolves.
I suspect the most interesting discoveries are still ahead.
Because half the fun is in the trying.
The Aurora Project is one part of my continuing development as a painter. Follow my wider creative development on my Painting Journey.