Smoky hues and delicate lines mark the paper as Melinda Chapman quietly works on one of her portraiture drawings, her darkened fingertip running across the page to smudge the graphite.
Her style offers hints of realism, combined with black and white minimalism - the stark contrasts in tone bringing every edge and crease to life.
Melinda, 26, only recently unearthed her gift for drawing and is now one of a collection of local artists participating in this year's Kapiti Arts Trail.
The event, running for its 17th time over the weekends October 29-30 and November 5-6, is the first for the Paraparaumu Beach artist.
"I've always enjoyed going to the arts trail and had been exploring different options for having an exhibition of my own, so this year I made it a goal to enter," said the ex-Kapiti College student, who is in her third year of a Bachelor of Design degree at Massey University, Wellington.
Set to exhibit at Raumati's Rimu Chiropractic Studio, alongside seasoned beach and nature painter Jacqui van den Berg, also of Paraparaumu Beach, Melinda looks forward to sharing the works she calls "clean and crisp with a lot of attention to detail".
"By being a part of the event, I'm hoping to meet new people and get feedback on my work to help me improve, while also getting my name out there as an artist.
"Seeing people going home with my work would be a bonus."
A fan of using thick, smooth paper for her predominately graphite pencil works, Melinda incorporates high contrast images with solid backgrounds.
"I love portraiture because I find it the most challenging, but also the most rewarding.
"Drawing is very relaxing and I always get a big sense of achievement when I finally finish a piece.
"However, by the time I've finished, I'm so attached to it I don't like letting it go."
Prior to having work exhibited at Waikanae's Mahara Gallery last year, Melinda had focused solely on creating artworks for her own walls, or as gifts for family and friends.
"I always drew as a child, until I reached third form at college and found art class restricting and boring and didn't really pick up a pencil from then.
"It wasn't until we had to take compulsory life drawing classes in my first year of university, in 2013, that I realised I missed it and wasn't half bad."
Having initially drawn whatever pleased her eye, Melinda had recently decided to focus on covering more meaningful concepts.
"If I'm going to spend a lot of time and effort on a piece, it should be more than just a pretty picture," she said.
"Art should be a talking point that stirs up a reaction, whether it's about the work itself or the meaning behind it.
