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Overcoming obstacles; one fairytale at a time

Teenage girls’ insecurities leads to artist’s series of fantasy illustrations
fairytale
Gabrielle Lightfoot’s small and simple drawings use colour and movement to depict optimism as the series follows fantastical fairy adventures.

It started with the idea of positive reinforcement.

As a counsellor and mother of two daughters, Gabrielle Lightfoot listened to stories of teenage insecurities and struggles from the young girls who visited her. "I found it was always girls who said they can't do something," she said.

"I've worked with a diversity of cultures and it's the same across the board. It's hard to hear their stories sometimes."

It sparked a creative fuse that led Lightfoot to do a series of illustrations about female empowerment called Fantasy Fairy Tales.

Always drawn to the visual arts, Lightfoot used her counselling experience in her artistic practice.

Her small and simple drawings use colour and movement to depict optimism as the series follows fantastical fairy adventures. Character expression also plays an important role in conveying the mood of the piece.

"The figures always look positive and content, as if they've overcome something," said the Richmond resident. "Oftentimes, there's movement depicted in the imagery to show that the fairy is going forward in life. They tell the story about how people move forward from their past story."

Lightfoot's love of fairy tales began as a young child. She would eagerly devour any story from the Brothers Grimm to Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty.

But within the fantasy, reality intertwines. Not only are some of the landscapes derived from real experiences, such as a swamp she visited during a trip to Oregon, so are some of the emotional challenges faced by the characters.

Lightfoot was born with a hip dislocation that caused her to be in and out of hospitals since the age of one and a half.

"I remember being pulled out of school a lot and feeling singled out," she said.

"My health has caused a lot of setbacks. But we all have issues, so my work is about overcoming obstacles, no matter what they are. I used my own experience as a vehicle to look at how we overcome these issues."

Lightfoot has spoken at local schools in the past and now wants to revisit them with her new series.

"I can draw and I can talk, so I thought, how can I encourage a positive attitude?" she said.

"I don't want to be preachy. I want to use the illustrations as a jumping off point."

In the meantime, she's been visiting Seafair Montessori Rainbow House with a similar series about empowerment for pre-school aged children.

In the meantime, she's been visiting Seafair Montessori Rainbow House with a similar series about empowerment for pre-school aged

Rather than drawings, she hand-makes soft dolls and uses them to tell stories to the classes.

In one story, her main character, Junior, has a physical disability, but doesn't realize it.

"The characters are very funny and also challenged in different ways, but they have a fantastic attitude," she said.

"Kids love the stories and love hugging the dolls afterwards. It provides an emotional connection for them."