Karee Dahl

Sunshine Coast National Art Prize 2026 - Finalist

_{Image courtesy of artist.}

Karee Dahl
QLD

Pieces of landscape
2026
Polyester thread, wash’n wear glue, mounted with pins on acoustic pinboard
70 x 150cm

I draw with thread, using fibre as a continuous line that is looped, layered, and accumulated to create works that sit between drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and textiles. My practice is grounded in repetition—an obsessive, rhythmic process in which the hand moves instinctively and the mind drifts. Through this labour-intensive approach, each work becomes a record of time, gesture, and thought.

Thread allows me to work with a tension between fragility and strength. Delicate on its own, its accumulation forms dense, structured surfaces that both absorb and emit light. Colour is built rather than applied, creating fields that shift and vibrate as the viewer moves. Influenced by my surroundings, domestic life, memory, and lived experience, my practice reflects the repetition and quiet labour embedded in everyday routines. I am interested in how small, persistent actions can accumulate into something complex and resonant.

A site-responsive engagement with landscape and what happens on the land has been central to my practice. This work is part of Pieces of Landscape, a new series that sits alongside In Our Own Backyard. Wooden and plastic pegs, water tanks, 44-gallon drums, taps, and other everyday objects continue to find their way into both bodies of work. These overlooked elements quietly occupy our landscapes and backyards, often unnoticed despite their essential role in daily life.

Through a playful use of colour and the repeated line of thread, I seek to reframe these familiar objects and the environments they inhabit. Each object carries its own story, purpose, and place within a larger network of human activity, offering an entry point for understanding my relationship to place and the interconnected systems that shape our landscapes that ultimately extend far beyond the boundaries of our own landscape/backyard.