Sunday Jemmott on play, paint and the power of a good scribble
For artist Sunday Jemmott, play is the starting point for creativity, discovery and self-expression. Ahead of her upcoming Museum of Brisbane residency, Sunday chats to us about Scribble Sanctuary – a colourful installation inspired by the childhood urge to draw on walls and the freedom of making without judgement. Through community-led workshops to colour walks, Sunday is exploring how art can foster belonging, connection and joy.
Your practice is described as “the expression of play through expanded painting” – what does play mean to you as an artist?
Play is the underlying methodology of my artistic practice. Play, for me, is about prioritising experimentation, discovery and joy! Ultimately, play serves as a tool to access your true creativity.
Colour, texture and abstraction are central to your visual language. What role do they play in communicating ideas that might otherwise be difficult to articulate?
These methods of expression allow me complete freedom and flexibility. I find these elements make for a visually rich outcome, and they all work hand in hand with each other. I like that colour, texture and abstraction draw you in close to think about the artist’s process, rather than articulating a finite idea.
You’ll be Museum of Brisbane’s Artist in Residence early next year, which will culminate in Scribble Sanctuary. Can you give us any insight into the ideas, themes and goals that are informing the undertaking?
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Scribble Sanctuary is an installation project. The goal is to transform Museum of Brisbane into a colourful escape full of expression and energy. One of the motivations for the project is a yearning for joy and untethered self-expression. I hope to capture a sense of safety and celebrate play through drawing!
Scribble Sanctuary is inspired in part by the childhood urge to draw on walls. What is it about that impulse that you wanted to capture?
Drawing is at the heart of this project, and is positioned as an instinctive behaviour, a genderless practice and a tool for understanding the world around us. Drawing on walls is a completely unbridled form of expression that I think most of us have experienced, plus it’s a bit rebellious, which I love!
Rather than simply displaying your work, Scribble Sanctuary invites people to participate in its creation via the Scribble Station workshops. Why was that an important part of the project for you?
The workshops are an avenue to create connection and foster a community-driven outcome. I am really interested in blending my own artistic expression with those who visit Museum of Brisbane. As the program is a residency, it is important to me that the outcome is one that reflects the Museum itself and its visitors, filtered through my own visual language!
The workshops will give visitors the opportunity to make work alongside you. What would you like people to experience when they sit down and start drawing?
I would love visitors to feel a sense of freedom. It is my ultimate goal to unleash everyone’s creativity and let them experience making without judgement or expectation. It is all about the process of exploring and getting to know our own personal expression.
The work (and your residency as a whole) is ultimately about belonging, creativity and connection. What can art do to help people feel that they belong?
Art is a universal language; it has the capacity to bring people together and can make people feel seen and heard in a very real way. It is my hope that audiences will be able to see themselves in Scribble Sanctuary – through the flick of a scribble or the delight of a colour selection. Art is one of the most accessible and historically proven ways to express ourselves; art is magic.
Finally, if you could prescribe one creative activity to every adult in Brisbane, what would it be?
I would prescribe a colour walk! In short, you choose a colour, and as you walk, find and follow the objects in the colour you selected. Taking the time out of our busy lives to slow down, appreciate colour and our surroundings is deeply nourishing, and I hope it inspires some adults out there!
Throughout October and November Sunday Jemmott will host drop-in workshops where you can draw alongside the artist and contribute to the Scribble Sanctuary before it opens in 2027. Find out more at the Museum of Brisbane website.
This article is published in partnership with our friends at Museum of Brisbane.
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