Devyn Ormsby

Devyn Ormsby (b. 1993, Masterton) graduated from Elam School of Fine Arts with first class hons in 2015. Since graduating her practise has evolved through a variety of mediums. Wanting to achieve a work / life / art balance, Ormsby has worked in various creative businesses. Her current position as an artist assistant in a glass studio in Avondale has helped her achieve this. 

Her painted works explore the intuitive yet impulsive nature of mark making, as well as perceptions of light and colour. Dream in Colour is reminiscent of drawing on foggy windows or resisting (or not) the urg to put your finger in icing.

Best know for her glass fruit, these works explore the familiar ornament and reimagines it in a new form. Through the process of glass casting techniques, Ormsby pays homage to the blown glass fruit makers and collectors from the 1960’s. The light playful approach to everyday fruit is contrasted with the heaviness of the crystal glass. A unique material that catches and reflects light. These objects are intended to provoke the senses and occupy a space where time may be kinder to them.

"My idea for this project was to reinterpret ornamental displays of fruit that were popular back in the day. Capsicums, bananas, apples, oranges and grapes, hanging in baskets, sitting on kitchen tables or windowsills, that you now come across in op-shops. They would be made from various materials; plastic, Lucite, glass or wood which would usually be light, simplistic and exaggerated in form. I wanted to cast fruit true to the original with as much detail as possible, accompanied by the weight of crystal glass, to show the familiar texture of the dimpled mandarin and the smoothness of a pear. Familiar everyday objects worthy of contemplation that open the conversation up around the relationships we have with objects and what they mean to us."