‘Water Nymph’ by Natasha Zraikat

Gold Coast (Yugambeh Country)-based artist Natasha Zraikat uses a carefully constructed aesthetic vocabulary of fantastical elements and deliberately executed realism to visually rekindle man’s connection with the natural world. Born in California to Jordanian and Ukrainian-Russian parents, Natasha immigrated to Australia in the early ‘90s where she has lived ever since.

Natasha’s earliest artistic memories include drawing, studying and surrounding herself with animals. This lifelong affinity has seen Natasha grow into a passionate environmentalist, and these themes have spilled into her work in recent years as her concerns about the state of the natural world continue to intensify.

Natasha is a self-taught artist, having taken one year in Italy for informal artistic development where she won First Prize in the City Wide Art VIII Competition in Florence. Her work has since been included in numerous other art prizes, including the SBS Portrait Prize, Metro Gallery Art Award, Lethbridge 20000 Art Prize, Williamstown Contemporary and the Art Lovers Australia Art Prize.

Natasha’s artwork is currently featured on the Beautiful Bizarre artist directory and she was recently awarded Second Prize at The Art of Imagination competition/exhibition at Petrie Terrace Gallery in Brisbane. Her work has also been featured in Art Edit Magazine, House and Garden UK, Precinct Magazine, Raw Ink and Gelmag.