Melissa Boughey Artist Statement
The main highway between the city and my country home traverses through the wheatbelt, tree plantations, some remnant bush, and ranges in the distance, before I arrive (some 5 hours later) in the southern coastal regions of WA. On this particular early spring Djilba morning the hues were magnificent. I was holding the canola and wattle yellows, the flowering native shrubs, the roadside, paddocks and ranges in mind. Starting in thin washes, and then building up the layers in wax and oil paint, the vision changes as I work with memory, intent and energy. I allow the work to emerge and am keen to see the journey it takes me on - always surprising.
Jo Davenport Artist Statement
When I visited Fowlers Gap in NSW after the rains, I was struck by the fragile abundance of new life – inch-high river gums, tiny plants and wildflowers suddenly sprouting where just an inch of rain had pooled in the red earth. So many of these seedlings will never make it, yet a few small heroes will survive. That mixture of vulnerability, persistence and optimism stayed with me when I returned home to my studio near Albury.
Thinking of William Blake’s poem Spring from Songs of Innocence, in which Spring and young children share the same pure, present-tense joy with no thought of past or future. This spirit of innocence, freedom and play has guided the making of these paintings. The first line of this poem ‘Sound the Flute’, I imagine Pan, the Greek god of the untamed natural world, sending gusts of wind to scatter pollen and colour across the canvas. Working mostly in acrylics to keep the colour luminous and the gesture fluid, I try to paint with the same exuberance and openness I saw in Blake’s poetry – allowing the marks to celebrate that first exhilarating rush of spring.
Agneta Ekholm Artist Statement
My practice broadly revolves around exploring points of shifting light, the dynamic nature of time and how these moments of transition can speak to the psychology of landscape. I look to reduce the landscape to its simplest forms to suggest more intangible, reflective moments within the natural environment aiming to create spaces for contemplation and stillness. I continually remain interested in how memory can reconstruct an image of the landscape, which is in turn imbued with an emotional or psychological connection to the place. In this, my paintings don’t particularly rely on the reality of a scene, but become composite images that contain different times, places and experiences, all at once. In an increasingly loud world, I, as a painter want to use the inherent qualities of the landscape to provide some kind of counterbalance to the growing proliferation of visual imagery we get bombarded with on a daily basis. I believe in painting and paintings continued ability to be transformative in a transforming world.
Dónal Molloy-Drum Artist Statement
This sculpture is a memory of a recent time spent living in a very beautiful, lush and meandering, coastal region of Ireland. Coming from the natural world, these abstract forms derive from macro and micro sources, and while not replicating specific specimens they convey an emotional response to the atmosphere of a place. With the recurring theme of the temporal nature of life continuing to guide my practice, these organic shapes whether supporting, poised or resting, evolve as an enduring structure in the precarious balance of nature. Now back at my studio in the very different setting of the flat plains in the Wimmera region of Victoria, through the dust and heat I continue to create and be influenced by the fragility and beauty of the landscape around me.
Jacob Leary Artist Statement
Jacob Leary’s sculptural assemblages, inspired by algorithmic systems and organic growth, represent the intersection of natural and technological processes. His layered, vibrant works, reminiscent of topographical maps, translate virtual constructs into tangible forms and examine how systemic patterns in design, from pixelated imagery to algorithmic logic, can inform physical realities. The paper-based works reflect a process of stratification, echoing the logic found in many physical and human-derived systems, where layers build upon layers to gradually evolve the forms that manifest around us. The forms, in terms of both design and construction, hover on the threshold between the human and non-human. The artist creates the initial two-dimensional territorial form, but due to the rasterised conditions of the photo editing program, the final three-dimensional result emerges from this pixelated picture space. Accompanying this is a process of erosion, where the complexity of the original forms is slowly subsumed by geometric pixels—a form of devolution of the shapes involved. The construction process relies on a digital cutting machine that precisely cuts the boundary for each paper-based layer, which is then delicately hand-stacked to create the overall forms. The accumulated forms evoke a rich array of systems—from the intricate organisation of cells and organic patterns to the structured layouts of cityscapes and electronic circuits. This interplay hints at the convergence of natural and engineered systems, suggesting a dialogue between the unpredictable nuances of life and the orderly precision of technology.
Michael Gromm Artist Statement
‘Through the light projected he can see himself up close’. Lemon. U2. Humanities evolutionary trajectory has become a course of abstraction. We are organic beings that have not only learnt to survive in our environment, but also how to change it, for better or worse, and synthesise new comfortable living conditions. Rather abstract ones at that. Controlled and removed from nature. Everything around you is an abstraction. A tree is milled into lengths of timber to make a table and chairs, or a doorway. Earth dug up and fired into bricks or a bowl. Steel into skyscrapers. Sand into glass. Photography has been recording this evolution for two centuries now- the first physical photograph was taken in 1826- and at the same time, through its own development it has made a record of its own growth. From the first grainy black and white image made with bitumen to saturated colour, to the pixel. Once revered for its technology breakthroughs, and feared for stealing souls… cameras are now commonplace and in everything, everywhere. We use them for recording memories, reversing the car, telling stories, selling products, selling ideas, selling propaganda… accountability and making ourselves accessible to the masses. It’s once again both witness, and mirror. These paintographs are pure pareidolia, an X-ray of amoebas, light reflected and light absorbed.
Peter Syndicas Artist Statement
Stride was inspired by a twig discovered in a small park in Unley, South Australia. For nearly thirty years, I’ve used these fragile twigs as inspiration for the abstract human figures I create. The twigs act as maquettes, guiding the forms that I then replicate on a larger scale in bronze, steel, or stone—creating a stark contrast between their delicate origin and the permanence of the sculpture. My work exists in a state of duality: the pieces are both dynamic, abstract human forms and fragments of nature shaped over time by their environments. By magnifying and preserving these ephemeral elements, the sculptures invite viewers to see beauty in what might otherwise be overlooked. I love that my work enables people to look at these tiny, seemingly insignificant fragments of nature as works of art, giving them presence, scale, and longevity.
Leah Thiessen Artist Statement
My work immerses itself in the emotional resonance of a landscape, capturing its memories, heartbeat, and untamed energy. Each piece serves as an intimate dialogue with the earth, embodying the unique spirit and atmosphere of a place that stirs my soul. Drawing inspiration from the wild embrace of nature, my paintings explore the intricate tapestry of the terrain. I often begin with delicate nuances before spiraling into a whirlwind of vibrant expression. Painting is a primal act, a visceral dance between instinct and emotion. Through dynamic brushwork and bold mark-making, I channel the very essence of a place, allowing the energy to flow onto the canvas. The journey unfolds through layering and revisiting, a transformative process that reveals the final harmony within each piece.
