Australian artist Nicolette Benjamin Black uses little strokes of pen and ink on canvas to create compelling works with a weighty message. For the artist, the patterns, swirls and dots within her drawings are an ancient cross-cultural activity able to speak to a diversity of cultures. In fact, much of Black’s influence comes from her Australian roots, both “the indigenous artists and their techniques and connectedness to their land, and my own European/Jewish Australian heritage.” Black’s pen on canvas drawings speak of harmony and a fascination with the intricate details that compose our natural world, allowing us a closer look at the beautiful lines and forms that make up the familiar landscape that surrounds us. Yet alongside her meticulous renderings is also a level of emotive expressionism, where layers of meaning are infused in each mark, meant to be interpreted by the individual viewer. As she explains, “All the world is open to interpretation; that is what makes human beings so special.” Nicolette Benjamin Black currently lives and works on ten acres of land outside of Canberra, Australia.