Readers may recognise Marsha Smith as a magazine craft editor and designer, but the Auckland-based creative also has a flourishing personal art practice. Her work Verdant Blush, featured in our Year of Art series, reflects her signature approach to texture, colour and composition, offering a soft, expressive take on botanical form.
Below, read our Q&A with Marsha Smith, and purchase a copy of the May 2026 issue of Your Home and Garden to collect your very own Verdant Blush art print.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I studied at Elam School of Fine Arts and then spent more than 25 years working in the magazine industry as a designer. Creativity has always been a constant thread throughout my life. Even during the busy years of work and raising a family, I was always making something – painting, crafting, sketching, or experimenting with materials in between the everyday rhythms of life.
In recent years, I’ve returned to painting more fully, which feels like a natural continuation of something that has always been part of who I am. I now live on a rural property in New Zealand and have found that being surrounded by open land, gardens and native bush has had a strong influence on my work. The quiet details of the landscape – shifting light, layered foliage and organic forms – continually inspire my painting practice.
What are the main inspirations behind your art?
My work sits within contemporary botanical abstraction. I’m drawn to the quiet language of nature – the way leaves overlap, the softness of new growth and the subtle changes of colour and light that move through foliage.
Rather than painting plants in a literal way, I respond to their shapes, energy and rhythm. I work intuitively, building layers of colour and marks that gradually suggest botanical forms. The greens, soft blush tones and natural textures in my paintings are influenced by the New Zealand landscape around me. Ultimately, I want my work to create a sense of calm – a visual pause that allows the viewer to slow down and notice the small, beautiful details that nature offers.
What was the story behind Verdant Blush?
Verdant Blush was inspired by the softness of fresh foliage and the gentle blush tones that appear in leaves and petals when light filters through them. The piece explores the balance between strength and delicacy in nature – lush greens layered with softer pinks and earthy tones.
The composition developed intuitively through layers of paint, allowing botanical shapes to emerge organically. It reflects a sense of growth, movement and quiet vitality – like stepping into a garden where colour, light and leaves overlap in unexpected ways.
Where in the home would the print look best?
I don’t believe there is a single “right” place for art. Sometimes the most special spots are the unexpected ones – on a shelf beside a small plant, above a console table, or tucked into a nook that needs a little life. I love the idea of placing it somewhere you naturally pass by, so that when you turn a corner, it offers a small moment of calm or joy.
Purchase a copy of the May 2026 issue of Your Home and Garden to collect your very own Verdant Blush art print.
Read more:
- Year of Art: Babiche Martens brings Singapore’s Chin Mee Chin to life
- Year of Art: Holly Roach’s vibrant ode to nature
- Year of Art: In conversation with illustrator Maria Francesca Melis, capturing Sardinian sunlight
