Stephanie Galloway Brown

Pure Portraiture

With her brilliant figurative works, Stephanie Galloway Brown creates works which inspire emotional connections to flawlessly encapsulate a moment in time with a combination of beeswax, oil and encaustics. 

Writer: Samuel Williams

Two King Parrots in Golden Wattle

Stephanie’s artmaking has been a lifetime in the making. Encouraged by her family in the hills of New Zealand, a younger Stephanie grew up alongside art, creating whenever she could. “Art has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. From the moment I could hold a pencil, I was constantly drawing,” Stephanie reminisced. “those early years surrounded by open landscapes and a close connection to nature have influenced the way i see and paint the world.” after departing her family farm to travel the world, stephanie would eventually call australia home, working in the arts and art- adjacent industries, and honing her skills along the way. “when i eventually settled in sydney, worked in publishing, graphic design, and illustration before finding my way back to painting,” said Stephanie. “I also spent time working with an internationally award-winning portrait photographer, which taught me a great deal about portraiture, light, and composition, lessons that became a strong foundation for my own art practice.” Today, Stephanie has been painting “seriously” for about twenty years, her artmaking a culmination of commitment to her craft. Her portraiture, in particular, has garnered Stephanie considerable acclaim, earning numerous commissions during her career as a professional artist. In her practice, Stephanie tends to focus in on the innate individuality of her subjects. “For me, it’s all about capturing the essence of the person. That quiet sense of who they are beyond the surface. I’m drawn to portraying a stance or gesture that feels uniquely theirs, something that conveys presence and strength,” explained Stephanie. “The gaze is incredibly powerful, whether it expresses defiance, calm, or indifference, it sets the emotional tone of the work.” She looks to impart a “sense of connection” through her works, a certain feeling of familiarity shared between the subject and the viewer, deepened by Stephanie’s unique brand of expressionist realism. And the selection of subjects is a process in and of itself, with potential subjects lingering in Stephanie’s mind for some time before reaching the canvas. “Usually, it’s because I admire or respect them, or there’s something about their presence, strength, or individuality that draws me in. I might begin with a loose concept or direction in mind, but people always bring their own energy and uniqueness to the sitting, which keeps the process wonderfully unpredictable.”

Portrait of Kathrin Longhurst

Portrait of Sally Robinson

Now the celebrated portrait artist we’ve come to know, Stephanie creates from her spacious garage studio in North Narrabeen, inspired by “being out in nature, the shifting light, the change of seasons, or simply watching people go about their everyday lives.” Stephanie is currently developing her Indoor/Outdoor series, and is experimenting with “imagined face and disrupted backgrounds.” We eagerly await her next works.

gallowaybrown.com.au 

@stephaniegallowaybrown