Talking With Painters

In early 2020, as COVID was sweeping the world, Filippa Buttitta (pictured right) was facing her own personal crisis. She had been working on her entry for the Archibald prize when she had trouble with her eyesight and was finding it difficult painting the fine details of her work. Thinking she needed an eye test, she visited her optometrist which led to a swift hospital admission and the shocking diagnosis of an aggressive brain tumour. In the past year she’s had to make decisions which go to the heart of one's purpose in life and which also highlight the importance of creativity.  This episode is about those choices but it’s also about Filippa's life as a skilled artist.  She's been painting for over 30 years, and has been a regular finalist in many art prizes including the Archibald (with a stunning portrait of the late Judy Cassab) as well as the Black Swan and Portia Geach and last year she was noted as one of the artists who had been selected the most times in Australian art prizes in that