A love of nature and landscape was nurtured by childhood spent living next to bushland in outer Brisbane and subsequent family moves to Karumba, Longreach, North Queensland and Noosa Heads.

An obsession with drawing the human form began from the age of three or four. In Grade One Elizabeth was severely disciplined for drawing a figure including eyelashes and eyebrows when the teacher had instructed the class in drawing a stick-figure.

Now she takes the advice of William Robinson: "Paint your life".

This has meant Elizabeth paints the Noosa National Park and surrounds, flowers from her garden and suburb, interiors and objects and people when she can get them to sit still long enough.

ARTIST STATEMENT
"Optimism is a conscious act of courage; painting flowers is a political act", Elizabeth Gair Palmer

Painting and drawing are a way of being for me. They are how I relate to the world and how I decipher what I find. Painting never fails to excite my senses. My practice is one of finding hope and beauty, often in the plainest or most ordinary of subjects. As an eleven-year-old I read about Vincent van Gogh's 'The Potato Eaters' and it has inspired me ever since.

My subjects range from figurative, landscape, still life, travel and my dreams. Inspiration is all around.

Ultimately I strive to make work that speaks of hope and optimism and to show that painting in a representational style still holds deep meaning for people.