Looking For Light

Looking for Light is a body of work painted by Patricia Doughty in 2020–2021, during Sydney’s COVID-19 lockdowns. It was a strange and difficult time for our family, for our community, for the world. Woodstock Runners, the club I’ve trained and run with since 2013, had to stop all its training and races. For many of us, running had always been as much about each other as the running itself; the Thursday trackwork, Saturday ParkRun, the Sunday long runs, the conversations before and after. When that stopped, the loss of that connection affected us all differently. One our running friends was Steve, a quiet regular at training and running events, often with a camera in hand. In the isolation of lockdown, without the routines and company that had held us together, we lost him. His death is what inspired this body of work. After hearing about Steve, I wanted to do something; to help, and to raise awareness around mental health. So every day through lockdown, I laid my paints and brushes out on the kitchen bench, moved my easel into the light, and painted.​ All proceeds from this exhibition go to mental health charities, in memory of Steve.