Born in south east of Kilkenny in rural Ireland, Lorraine Brett attended Crawford College of Art and Design in Cork, graduating with a degree in Fine Art Painting. Having spent the last 10 years in Asia, Lorraine currently resides on Jeju Island, South Korea where she works with an International School and spends her days painting the luminous light that is an everyday part of the Island.
Having spent much of my professional life in Gallery management, Arts Advocacy and Arts Education, it has taken 20 years to come back to nurturing my own soul and return to painting. A friend once told me nothing is lost in career experience, everything reapplies into the next career, all experiences valuable to our growth.
I hope this especially applies to how we work on canvas, each brush stroke a signature of the life we have lived and the person we become. When I take my morning walk, I watch the sun rise each morning, the luminosity of the light enchants me each day. And when I look at the landscape now, I see it, in my mind’s eye, in shapes of paint, brush strokes, knife marks, washes and layers of luminous colour. The longing to render the world in paint is growing stronger in me. It is this desire that drives the painter inside me on my journey as a Painter.
SIKA THE WILD DEER illustrated by Lorraine Brett
In 2020, after two years of working on the Illustrations for Sika the Wild Deer, is finally published. It has been both a trill and a privilege. Liam Nolan wrote the story of one wild sika stag told over his life time in Wicklow Mountains. His life and times, from birth to late middle age, are observed through the eyes of a Deerstalker, accompanied by his dog and with a raven as witness to happenings on the hill. Using a variety of inks on paper, and collaborating between Shanghai and Ireland, Lorraine sketched Liam’s vision of the Sika deer and his surroundings environment. Lorraine was guided by Liams expansive knowledge and passion for the subject delving into every detail. The book is available for purchase online through the Deer Alliance website and through selected outlets. http://www.deeralliance.ie
Lorraine Brett Artist 