Laura Challiss Kneebone

Laura in her studio © Peter Solness
1 Wallis Street, Maianbar New South Wales 2230, Australia
Laura in her studio © Peter Solness
1 Wallis Street, Maianbar New South Wales 2230, Australia
Listen to Laura talk about her work.
The place where I reside profoundly shapes my creative process, offering me the rare gift of immersion. It’s here that I observe, reflect, and collect—an ever-curious keeper of moments that linger in memory. Though I take photographs as references, they are only starting points, visual cues to anchor my ideas. What I truly seek to create comes from within—a deeper expression that transcends the seen and touches the imagined. This is how I paint and create, guided by intuition and inner vision.
For me, colour is not merely visual; it’s an interaction, an energy that resonates on an emotional level. A piece of art, in its truest form, should evoke a journey—transporting the viewer to "that dream place," where reality and imagination intertwine.
I work without a fixed "style," allowing my practice to flow with what I feel and where the energy takes me. My work often blends realism and abstraction, drawing on a diverse palette of materials. Acrylics, oils, pastels, oil sticks, and natural pigments feature prominently, each chosen to convey the mood and texture of a piece. I am deeply connected to the environment, often incorporating natural dyeing methods and pigments sourced from the earth and creek waters nearby. These elements are applied to various surfaces, including canvas, boards, natural linens and the likes, or recycled and reworked vintage pieces, creating a tangible connection to the land I inhabit.
My finished works span an array of forms: richly painted canvases, textured wall hangings, The interplay of texture, colour, and form is at the heart of each piece, inviting the viewer to explore layers of meaning and experience.
What resonates most deeply with me is stillness—the peace and beauty of the natural world. The crashing of waves, the shifting hues of the landscape, and the golden glow of a sunset all inform my creative practice. These moments of quiet wonder serve as my muse. For me, art is both a refuge and a keeper of such beauty, preserving it as a source of inspiration and solace for all time.