Water, light and the natural world remain a constant source of beauty and inspiration, deepened through my love of painting outdoors on location.
Best known for her evocative coastal scenes and fluid depictions of water, Belinda’s work invites viewers to pause and feel a sense of place and connection.
A two-time finalist in the Hunter Emerging Artist Prize and Newcastle Club Foundation Art Prize, she is also an exhibiting member of Make Space, an artist-run collective at The Station Newcastle.
Hello and welcome! I’m Belinda Dorey.
I’m a painter moved by the desire to render my response to the beauty around me.
My story began by Lake Macquarie, on Awabakal land, where I spent my childhood exploring its rocky shores, salty depths and abundant bushland. Those formative years in nature fostered a deep reverence for the natural world.
Water has long been a source of fascination and refuge - my favourite subject matter to paint. In 2020 after a serious back injury left me unable to work, swimming and walking in water became a lifeline, while painting offered a path back to creativity, health and wellbeing.
Grateful every day to be right where I’m meant to be.
In my twenties, a love of freedom and travel led me on a lap of Australia. I eventually settled on Kangaroo Island, drawn to its wild beauty and pristine turquoise waters. There, encouraged by a local artist, I began working with pastels and exhibiting my art.
Returning to Newcastle in 2011, I embraced oil painting, balancing family life with my art. Today, you’ll find me painting in my dream studio, or outdoors by the lake or ocean absorbed in capturing the light and atmosphere, grateful every day to be right where I’m meant to be.
