Chad Stevens Artist

Chad Stevens Artist Mixed Media Painter

This is my first sketch up in a new series that has quietly been two years in the making.The Wompoo Fruit Dove represent...
24/08/2026

This is my first sketch up in a new series that has quietly been two years in the making.

The Wompoo Fruit Dove represents tally_farm , the last place I worked and a place that became an important part of my travels and life philosophy. A mating pair were ever present with their beautiful colours and calming koo I feel they are the best example of my experience in this stunning place.

Over the past two years, I’ve been photographing, observing and interacting with birds as I’ve moved around the country. I’ve decided to bring those encounters together into one body of work, documenting not only the birds themselves, but the places and moments I associate with them.

This will probably be a long process and I’m really excited to finally begin sharing it.

For each bird, I’ll be sharing the whole process from my original sketches and studies through to the painting as it develops and, eventually, the finished work.

Plenty more to come.

The way I paint portraits is very organic. I don’t pre-plan the palette or the composition. It’s just me, the sitter, an...
21/08/2026

The way I paint portraits is very organic. I don’t pre-plan the palette or the composition. It’s just me, the sitter, and the painting. We go for it and see where it takes us.

Sometimes I f**k it up. Sometimes I get stuck in that downward spiral of overpainting, underpainting, fixing, changing, then fixing the fix. At the time, I considered these paintings pushed too far and not really saleable. Looking back at them now, I can see that with a little more restraint, some of them could have been great paintings.

But that’s also part of the process. The last image here actually became the base for Jono, my first award-winning painting. So you really never know where a painting is going to take you.

It’s interesting because my birds are the complete opposite. They’re meticulously planned. Colour, form and composition are all considered before I begin. Portraits are my break from that control.

Anyway, here are a few of my follies. The paintings I thought I’d ruined, pushed too far or simply got wrong.

Sometimes knowing when to stop is the hardest part of painting.

One of my earliest roses , I use them to experiment with glazes as the petals allow you to see the flow and it also come...
03/08/2026

One of my earliest roses , I use them to experiment with glazes as the petals allow you to see the flow and it also comes down to the colour of the clay used , this was reclaim and I believe the glaze combo was sapphire and galaxy

Getting back into watercolour as I’m trying to spend more time with a medium that’s easy to travel with. Expect to see a...
28/07/2026

Getting back into watercolour as I’m trying to spend more time with a medium that’s easy to travel with. Expect to see a lot more watercolours over the next few months. I’m really looking forward to capturing the soft blues, greens and earthy tones that Tasmania does so well. In the meantime, here’s Toby the cat. He’s about halfway done, but I thought I’d share the process.

Love this mandarin under glaze 🧡
21/07/2026

Love this mandarin under glaze 🧡

A little proof that I am working on somethings…
30/06/2026

A little proof that I am working on somethings…

The rain pretty much hasn’t stopped for days now, so it’s been the perfect excuse to disappear into the studio and work ...
18/05/2026

The rain pretty much hasn’t stopped for days now, so it’s been the perfect excuse to disappear into the studio and work on some ceramics.

I’ve finally wrapped up a large commission that I’ve been working on for months, which has freed me up to spend time on the things that really put my mind at ease. Making roses for me is one of those processes where I completely fall into a flow state. I stop overthinking, switch off for a while and just create.

It’s the same feeling I get when I paint birds. Finding subject matter that genuinely connects with you is so important, not just for a creative career but for your creative life in general. It’s what keeps you grounded in the process and reminds you why you started creating in the first place.

An old work, I don’t think I was in the best mind set then 🌚🌝😂 I do like the marks though, I might try this style again ...
13/05/2026

An old work, I don’t think I was in the best mind set then 🌚🌝😂 I do like the marks though, I might try this style again and see what happens 😬

Getting back into pottery lately, this is a rose I made a while back, it’s quite a meditative process to make and they a...
27/04/2026

Getting back into pottery lately, this is a rose I made a while back, it’s quite a meditative process to make and they are super easy. I would use them to test the glazes as the different surface levels let you see how the glaze reacts after firing.

“Betty” 30 x 30cm mixed medium on Masonite : SOLDBetty is one of the OG chickens on the farm so I thought its best to pa...
26/04/2026

“Betty” 30 x 30cm mixed medium on Masonite : SOLD

Betty is one of the OG chickens on the farm so I thought its best to pay her some homage, stay tuned for more farm/ rural themes coming in the near future 🐓🐴🐷👨‍🌾

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Palm Beach, QLD

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