Soleil Heimlich

Soleil Heimlich is an artist that is inspired by landscapes, feelings and special moments in her life!

An active wanderer, fond surfer, and admirer of nature, Soleil Heimlich’s artistic influence is fuelled from a lifestyle of being in and around the ocean. While an artist of various styles her whole life, her trips overseas as well as at home along the beautiful coastlines of Western Australia have played a instrumental role in her incorporation of the mediums featured in her exhibition.

Realistic pen illustration has always been a means of capturing and sharing special landscapes, moments, and feelings with her audience. Whether embarking on a four year intercontinental sailing trip with her family or later traveling independently around the globe, her packing space tends to be considerably limited on her adventures. The lightweight and compact nature of painting with ball point pen and paper has been a perfect medium for her as it has allowed her to easily travel with her art supplies and pursue her passion wherever she finds herself on her journeys. Additionally, Soleil has always welcomed the challenges the pen and paper medium present. The vast majority of her artwork is created at the scene and she is unable to rely on colours to create finer detail or erase any mistakes. She believes this leads to a better flow and values the importance of being fully immersed in the moment and having to work with every pen stroke made.

The recycled artwork found in her exhibition is a testimony to the current state of the planet and was inspired by witnessing large scale plastic pollution throughout her travels. This artwork is produced exclusively with materials obtained during beach clean-ups in the local southwest region with her two young children Kailani and Malia. Examples of mediums used in her work include microplastics, marine rope, and styrofoam among many others. Using upcycled materials in her artwork can present its own array of challenges as it is entirely dependent on what she finds washed up during her beach clean ups, but she feels that gives her artwork a spontaneous, creative effect. She believes her art should not be restricted to one medium, but rather be combining different kinds of materials to create something both meaningful and unique.

While unable to change the past, she hopes that we can all learn from the waste mankind has created and produce something better from it.