The latest exhibition as Castlemaine’s newest arts space, Artpuff at The Mill, was unveiled last Friday evening.
Puffpaper II features the works of Ginny Grayson, Debra Patterson and Kynan Sutherland. All on paper, all drawing on subjects close to home.
Ginny Grayson has exhibited nationally and internationally, was awarded the 2008 Dobell Prize for Drawing, and has been included in publications on Contemporary Drawing. Her work is held in various Australian collections including the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
She lives, draws and walks dogs in Fryerstown. Talking about the work on show, Grayson says she adores animals, especially dogs.
“The works in Puffpaper II are of my beloved mates, past and present. I love watching and drawing them.
They always manage to keep me spellbound. I only wish they lived for much longer….don’t we all,” Grayson says.
You can feel this adoration in the work, in the gentle constant movement of charcoal across paper, and the familiarity that comes through in how the form (sleeping, watching, waiting …) is captured. The result of quiet observation and an accomplished drawing practice.
Alongside are drawn landscapes by Kynan Sutherland, completed en plein air in the local landscape around Castlemaine.
Sutherland describes the work and the process of making it…
“Sitting quietly in the bush I let the natural rhythms of the landscape guide my hand, using a soft pencil and an old calligraphy brush I bought from Japan,” he says.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the way particular marks speak for the whole. The white space is important … There’s a luminosity to white paper that I feel echoes the luminosity of the bush. It speaks to the inherent rest at the heart of all things. These spontaneous and unselfconscious watercolours are celebrations of the natural world and our place within it.”
Sutherland has exhibited widely. He has received numerous prizes including the AME Bale Painting Prize (finalist), Dominique Segan Drawing Prize (winner), Adelaide Perry Prize for Drawing (finalist), John Leslie Art Prize (finalist) and the Castlemaine State Festival Art Award (twice winner).
Also inspired by what’s around her, Debra Patterson has on show a collection of studies, of both domestic and landscape environments. Abstracted still life and quietly observed charcoal sketches, honouring the beauty of drawn line and warm, sustained looking. A show to take in slowly, and not to miss.
Puffpaper II will feature until July 10. You can find Artpuff at The Mill in Walker Street. The gallery is open Thurs – Sun 11am-5pm.
