Nic Mason

“I am seduced by paint, the process of painting and art history. I care deeply about the environment. My paintings are strongly influenced by my background in conservation management, family, the land and people around me. In my work, I explore painting as a symbolic vehicle for contemplating issues of environmental loss and hope. In my artistic practice, I consider our engagement with and impact on the natural world. I am interested in the possibilities of enticing new ways of thinking through connection and engagement with art.” 

Nic Mason is an emerging artist from the NSW Tablelands region who is richly informed by her background in science.  In 1996, with a Bachelor of Science from Macquarie University she went on to a twenty-year career in the conservation and land management sector.  In 2020 Nic was awarded a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from University of New South Wales where she was acknowledged as a Dean's List recipient during her honours year. This followed a Graduate Certificate of Arts in the Painting workshop at the Australian National University School of Art in 2017.  Nic's work has been highly commended in the national Adelaide Perry Prize for Drawing in 2020 along with being a finalist in many other national awards including the: 2018 Macquarie Group Emerging Artist Prize; 2018 Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize (emerging section) and many more. She has exhibited in numerous solo and small group shows. Her third solo exhibition was held in Canberra with GOST at the CSIRO Discovery Centre. Nic was selected with artists and science specialists, to collaborate with Orana Arts and the Office of Environment and Heritage on the Art of Threatened Species Project which culminated in the Art of Threatened Species Exhibition at Western Plains Cultural Centre in NSW during 2019-2020.