ARTIST PROOF THE COLLECTIVE SPIRIT OF FREESTONE PRESS ARTIST PROOF THE COLLECTIVE SPIRIT OF FREESTONE PRESS ARTISTS
Diana Balhorn Adelaide MacPherson Helen Banks Deborah Milligan Alan Chappelow Gail Noble Wendy Chappelow Jenny Noone Judith Dorber Vanessa (Ness) Power Lesley Duxbury Fiona Reynolds Ali Fullard Maxine Salvatore Amanda Goodge Lorraine Scott Kye Hanley Valmai Todd Susan Hibberdine Louisa Waters Glenda Johnson Pat Waters Gillian Kline Lorraine Watt Tamsyn Lenné Ten Years of Freestone Press
ERIN MATHEWS CURATOR, GIPPSLAND ART GALLERY
Driving down the winding road through Briagolong, you would The great achievement of Freestone Press over the years has be forgiven for missing the turnoff into Freestone Press. The dirt been to unite a disparate group of regional artists with a common driveway gives way to a house on the hill and the studio, rising out focus (a passion for printmaking) and a shared camaraderie. of the bush on your right. The picturesque studio, sitting amongst Collectively they have pushed each other to achieve more than trees hides a creative powerhouse. This unassuming building any of them could have individually. The artists of Freestone Press has been the location for the development of artists and their are dedicated to the development of their craft and sharing their practices over the last ten years. knowledge. Artists often participate in workshops with some of I have been lucky enough to work with the artists, who have Australia’s finest printmakers, including Martin King, Dave Frazer, met here regularly, to create work for this 2020 show. Stepping Jazmina Cininas, and Heather Shimmen. inside the studio space I am always greeted by a group of The artists included in this ten-year celebratory exhibition enthusiastic artists, with cries for coffee and tea, and a selection showcase the range of printmaking skills and styles that have of snacks. They talk about art and about life; and visiting been developed through the Freestone Press community Freestone Press is a highlight of my week. This space is a focus and studio. Each artist was asked to produce new work for point for community, with a rotating group of artists coming and this exhibition, which has been combined with works from going. As Gillian tells me over coffee, the Gippsland Art Gallery collection. The work created by the Freestone Press artists celebrate and elevate everyday “Freestone Printmakers have always been a fluid experiences to create memorable images that exploit the inherent group of artists who come together to work, exhibit, characteristics of the medium to their greatest effect. travel and support each other”.
The purpose-built studio is fully equipped, with facilities for Intaglio and Relief printmaking. On any given studio day, you might see artists working on etching copper plates, cutting lino, working on aquatints, discussing layering and paper colours, or sitting down to discuss their works together. Freestone Press is owned and operated by Gillian Kline, an exceptional printmaker, who gladly shares her knowledge and time with all those who come to work here. Artists can join regular studio days or participate in art tours or weekend workshops. Gillian says,
“Freestone Press is open to all ages, all abilities and is an inclusive studio for all people who would like to explore the fascinating practice of Printmaking”.
Freestone Press launched in 2010, inspired by the Briagolong School of Fine Art, run by Pat and Mick Waters. Gillian opened the purpose-built printmaking studio for artists who were drawn to that particular practice.
3 DIANA BALHORN
Artist Statement
My prints are inspired from my surroundings and knowledge of horses. All subjects are my own, gathered or memorised from personal experience. Making art using these themes is an expression of my love for the land. It is my never-ending passion to manage and support it using common sense and observation.
Artist Biography
Diana Balhorn was born in Yarram, Victoria. She completed a Tertiary Orientation program at Sale Technical College focusing on drawing, photography, painting and ceramics. From here she travelled widely, her close companions were a saddle, camera and sketch pad. Diana has exhibited in several solo shows around Gippsland, group exhibitions at commercial galleries in Melbourne and regional galleries in Gippsland. She has exhibited regularly with Freestone Printmakers and Briagolong artists. Balhorn currently works from home as a maker of hand braided custom horse gear under her logo dbbraiding. The artist also has work in the collection of Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale.
Diana BALHORN
Wind Direction – A Narrative, 2013 Etching on paper (edition 7/20) 19.7 x 29.7cm (platemark); 28.4 x 37.8cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
4 Diana BALHORN Diana BALHORN
Eye To The Soul, 2018 The Beat, 2019 Etching and aquatint on paper Etching and aquatint on paper 54 x 47cm (sheet) 33 x 40cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist HELEN BANKS
Artist Statement
The experience of viewing a smoking ceremony at dawn left a lasting impression on me, and conjured up feelings of contemplation about where we sit as individuals in the environment. The cloudy morning on a deserted beach with only the people at the ceremony in attendance just added to the mood of the morning. Polymer photogravure is a photographic printing process that helps to represent the mood and feeling I am trying to capture in my images. Through my art I want to highlight the things people often take for granted in this busy world we call life. The way people view relationships not only with each other but the environment we pass every day in our rush and hurry to participate in life.
Artist Biography
Helen Banks is an Australian Artist who grew up in rural Victoria, where she currently lives. Her artistic practice has evolved over many years through the exploration of traditional crafts, the culmination of these skills is now being expressed in her current body of work through printmaking, book art and textiles. She completed an advanced Diploma of Visual Art at East Gippsland TAFE and has gone on to exhibit consistently over the past 10 years in both regional and commercial galleries, and has work in both public and private collections.
Helen BANKS
Davies Plain, 2015 Linocut on paper (edition 5/20) 19.9 x 25.1cm (platemark); 28.2 x 38cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
6 Helen BANKS Helen BANKS
No Birds Fly, 2020 Dawn, Lake Tyers, 2020 Polymer photogravure on paper Polymer photogravure on paper 40 x 31.5cm (sheet) 30 x 37.5cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist ALAN CHAPPELOW
Artist Statement
Most of my photographic work has been based on landscape. In my early years the vast majority of my time was spent outdoors, either coastal or in small town areas. As a small child, my siblings and I were allowed to roam beaches looking for driftwood or salvage items, so always out in the open. Such was lighthouse life in the 1950’s. The Australian landscape never ceases to fascinate me.
Artist Biography
Alan Chapelow was born in Sydney is 1948, moving to the country with his family for his father's work as a lighthouse keeper in five locations. Alan's education was started with home schooling, then three years of primary school and three years of high school after which time he decided to run away to sea and joined the Australian Navy. His main interest is photography upon which the majority of his work is based. Alan has no formal photographic training and his work over the last 62 years has been self taught. He has attended several photographic based printing workshops over the years, such as copper plate photogravure, platinum and palladium, salt printing and Van Dyke printing processes at Gold Street Studios and solar plate process at Baldessin Press. Alan has exhibited at the Tyers Art Show, Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong, and Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale with Freestone Press group. He has also attended Freestone Press several times on various workshops.
Alan CHAPPELOW
Shimmering Fear, 2013 Photo-etching on paper (edition 7/10) 14.3 x 26.7cm (platemark); 28.5 x 37.8cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
8 WENDY CHAPPELOW
Artist Statement
This work was inspired by local bushfires impacting on Sale and local regions. We were at home, just out of Sale, and the urgency and preparations intensified as burning leaves fell from the raging sky. Our car was packed, we were at the ready. The dilemma of ‘should we go or should we stay’ hovered in the air with uncertainty. Then the crisis passed and calm prevailed. This print was taken from a hand coloured collagraph plate.
Artist Biography
Wendy Chappelow was born in Sydney and within the following 18 years lived in Canberra, Brisbane, Mt Isa, and Darwin before returning to Sydney to complete tertiary studies. The different landscapes, climates and social interactions of these areas impacted greatly on her growing understanding and knowledge of this ‘Island Home’.
Wendy CHAPPELOW
Dilemma, 2013 Collagraphy on paper (edition 7/20) 29.8 x 19.7cm (platemark); 37.4 x 28.7cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
9 JUDITH DORBER
Artist Statement
The new series of monotypes titled Twilight are for me like small journeys. Snap shots of moments in time. This idea evolved in autumn and winter 2019, in the twilight hours, pre sunrise, while temporarily incapacitated and recovering from a fall. Framed by a small window I was focused on a continuum of changing light and cloud forms passing. It was a mesmerising activity, alone with my thoughts. I hope to convey my thoughts and ideas using the monotype technique as it alludes to the passing of time and in the moment. This process enables me to create one off images. An inked copper plate is drawn into with a rag, ink is removed until an image has evolved on the plate. The plate is placed on the press, dampened paper over the plate which will have some remaining ink. It is then passed through a press. These are one of a kind and cannot be repeated. The circle seemed the most appropriate way to frame these works, maintaining an intimate and emotional response to the images. We are now facing changing weather patterns and rising sea levels which are of a great concern for the world. My thoughts and concerns of a changing climate underly this work.
Artist Biography
Judith Dorber was born in Melbourne in 1948 and lives in Maffra, Gippsland. She completed a Bachelor of Fine Art at Monash University, Churchill in 1994. Printmaking is the primary medium used in her artistic practice, and she has work held in the Gippsland Art Gallery collection. Her solo Exhibitions include Elements of Landscape, Nuances of Blue, Tracelines, and Bejewelled, Maffra Exhibition Space, Maffra; Landscape Continuum, East Gippsland Art Gallery, Bairnsdale. Her group Shows include - Imagine, Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale; Stephen McLaughlan Gallery, Melbourne; 45 Downstairs, Flinders Lane, Melbourne; West Gippsland Art Centre, Warragul; Oak Hill Gallery, Mornington; Gecko Gallery, Fish Creek; Latrobe Regional Art Gallery, Morwell; East Gippsland Art Gallery, Bairnsdale; Cowwarr Art Space, Cowwarr; and Counterparts, Impact 7 international print conference, Arc Yinnar. Judith regularly exhibits at Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong and she was shortlisted for the Drawing Prize Exhibition, Arc Yinnar in 2006 and 2012. Judith DORBER
Chrysalis, 2015 Two-plate aluminium etching on paper (edition 2/20) 19.6 x 24.7cm (platemark); 26.4 x 38.8cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
10 Judith DORBER
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT From the series Twilight 5:59:39am, 2020 Ink on paper 23.5 x 23.5cm 5:59:40am, 2020 Ink on paper 23.5 x 23.5cm 5:59:41am, 2020 Ink on paper 23.5 x 23.5cm Courtesy the artist LESLEY DUXBURY
Artist Statement
The motivation for Future Landscape #1–#4 was the devastating bushfires of 2019/2020 in New South Wales and Victoria, which have left vast tracts of country to waste, smouldering forests and unrecognisable landscapes. What was once green and alive with wildlife is monochrome and dead. Nowhere on earth is safe from the effects of global warming. It is said that Mars once looked like our earth but the equivalent of climate change rendered it dry, dusty and lifeless. In these prints I have represented the ravaged environment with images of volcanic, treeless landscapes currently to be found on earth and annotated each with a phrase that describes the surface of Mars to indicate the semblance of our respective fates.
Artist Biography
Lesley Duxbury was born in the United Kingdom and emigrated to Australia in 1983. She currently lives in Briagolong. Lesley combines photography and printmaking to realise a range of works on paper regarding the landscape and atmospherics of place. She has exhibited nationally and internationally for over 30 years including Echo: A Survey, Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale; Antipodean Views, Geelong Gallery, Victoria; Phantasm, Herhusid, Siglufjordur, Iceland; Breathing Hemispheres Blindside, Melbourne; Sky Lab, Counihan Gallery, Melbourne; Bowness Photography Prize, Monash Gallery of Art, Victoria; and 27° South to 19° North: Contemporary Australian Photography, The Museum of the City of Cuernavaca, Mexico. Her work is held in all major public collections in Australia. She has undertaken artist residencies in Iceland, Paris, Australia Council Studio and Fremantle Arts Centre. In 2011 she was awarded an Australia Council for the Arts New Work Grant (established artist).
Lesley DUXBURY
Carbon, 2013 Screenprint on paper (edition 7/20) 22 x 16.5cm (platemark); 38.3 x 28.4cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
12 Lesley DUXBURY
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT Future Landscape #1-4, 2020 Photo-etching, chine collé, inkjet print on paper 40 x 30cm (each) Courtesy the artist ALI FULLARD
Artist Statement
My work expresses the drama, moods and iconography of the changing Australian landscape, both natural and man-made. I gain inspiration from what I see in my surroundings and how it resonates within me. Images of decaying or forgotten structures placed by man in the landscape, hold a fascination for me, as does the light and form of the natural environment. My works incorporate many mediums and techniques, which I am continually exploring. I use a range of etching processes and experiment with other printmaking modes, but pastel and charcoal are favourite mediums. Acrylic, watercolour, oil and crayon are also incorporated to create textured and layered surfaces which express the changing story of the landscape. I begin works by focussing on line and form with manipulation of darks and lights to further enhance the mood or drama I wish to express.
Artist Biography
Ali Fullard was born in Melbourne and after graduating in art education from Melbourne University moved to Gippsland where she taught art and related creative studies at a number of schools and colleges. Since 1986, Ali has exhibited in group and solo shows in Melbourne and Gippsland including, 45 Downstairs, Stephen McLaughlan Gallery, Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale; Maffra Exhibition Space, Maffra; Latrobe Regional Gallery, Morwell; East Gippsland Art Gallery, Bairnsdale; and the Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong. Drawing and printmaking techniques are used to express the drama of the Australian landscape which is the main inspiration for her work. Her work is in public and private collections.
Ali FULLARD
4am Out The Window, 2013 Photo-etching and drypoint on paper (edition 5/24) 19.7 x 29.8cm (platemark); 28.4 X 37.4cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
14 Ali FULLARD Ali FULLARD
Moonlight (Wingan River, Gippsland), 2019 Still Here (Wingan Inlet, Gippsland), 2019 Aquatint and etching on paper Aquatint and etching on paper 29.2 x 44.6cm 29.2 x 44.6cm Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist AMANDA GOODGE
Artist Statement
When one ‘opens ones eyes’ there is so much inspiration on your doorstep. Environment and the natural world, creatures large to minuscule are the source of my creativity. These works were inspired by the simplicity, beauty and diversity that my garden and surrounding area supports. The repetitive act of carving the lino is a meditation in itself, an absorbing and very satisfying process for me. With some of my prints I choose to leave working marks to give a background texture or atmosphere within the print. Finally the hand-colouring brings the print an energy, a life, that captures the moment as I saw it. On reflection, my prints have a similarity to the lead light windows that I created early in my artistic career.
Artist Biography
Amanda Goodge was born in Melbourne and now resides in bushland in Seaton, Victoria. She studied at Prahran College of Advanced Education, majoring in ceramics, and later studied sculpture at Bairnsdale and Yallourn TAFE. Her interest is in the environment. Over her artistic career, Amanda has employed a variety of different mediums to realise her diverse range of works. Amanda has exhibited in many regional galleries throughout Victoria in group shows and has held six solo exhibitions. She has won awards in Dandenong, Echuca, Orbost, Yinnar and Williamstown and has works in private collections.
Amanda GOODGE
Pollinator, 2020 Linocut and watercolour on paper 30 x 30 cm (image) Courtesy the artist
16 Amanda GOODGE
Botany Bay Weevil, 2020 Linocut and watercolour on paper 30 x 30 cm (image) Courtesy the artist KYE HANLEY
Artist Statement
I am fascinated by the overlapping physical and psychological aspects of the human animal, and seek to illustrate the core experiences of our humanity from the instinctive mammalian footprint. I often use motifs of bones, newborns and eggs to speak of the absolute beginning, and like to include wild elements like claws, sharp teeth and distinctive print to reiterate the concept of the true untamed self, before cultural and familial domestication work to dull our sharps! My piece Encryption is informed by the beautiful and intricate lines, called sutures, that connect the individual plates of skulls. They form organic mortise and tenon joints of inseparable connection between the plates. They are quite varied and hieroglyphic in nature, wonderfully symbolic of our relations with other people. My usual medium is copper plate etching with aquatint. In this print I have used the technique of open bite to convey the sense of inherited, embedded need for connection with others, especially our own kin.
Artist Biography
Kye Hanley was born near Newcastle in New South Wales, and currently resides in Boisdale, Victoria. She completed a Diploma in Visual Arts at East Gippsland TAFE, majoring in painting. Kye began printing when she joined Freestone Press in Briagolong, Victoria. Kye has exhibited as part of Freestone Press, in commercial and regional galleries, including Stephen McLaughlan Gallery, Melbourne and 45 Downstairs, Melbourne. In 2018 Kye was part of the inaugural exhibition of the new Gippsland Art Gallery in Sale. Kye’s work is in the collection of Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale, and private collections.
Kye HANLEY
The Enduring Ancestor, 2015 Etching and aquatint on paper (edition 2/20) 19.5 x 24.6cm (platemark); 26.6 x 39cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
18 Kye HANLEY
Encryption, 2020 Copper plate etching on paper 60 x 45cm Courtesy the artist SUSAN HIBBERDINE
Artist Statement
Shadowing her father in his garden and post-war allotment Susan absorbed the rudiments of gardening and the significance of plants both cultivated and wild. Flowers were observed, collected, pressed, arranged in vases and drawn. Family walks in the countryside were a constant source of inspiration. After a lifetime of working with words and people, her current task of restoring a garden, together with the proximity of a red gum forest have re-ignited a love of the environment and a desire to capture its plant life on paper.
Artist Biography
Born in Harrow, north of London, Susan currently lives in Briagolong where she works as a gardener. Educated in England, with an Honours Degree in history from University College London, she came to Australia in 1963. Frequent visits to art galleries as a child and an innate desire to make marks on paper balanced with an intense interest in the natural world provided inspiration to study the history of art at a tertiary level. Making marks on paper continues to be her favourite medium. Working with drypoint on acetate enables basic drawings to be reproduced with the challenge of translating pencil into print.
Susan HIBBERDINE
Hakea Laurina, 2019 Watercolour on drypoint acetate engraving on paper (unique state) 22 x 30.2cm (platemark); 24.2 x 31.7cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Purchased, 2019
20 Susan HIBBERDINE Susan HIBBERDINE
Eucalyptus Leucoxylon, 2019 Brachychiton Populneus, 2019 Watercolour on drypoint acetate Watercolour on drypoint acetate engraving on paper (unique state) engraving on paper (unique state) 38 x 28cm (sheet) 28 x 38cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist GLENDA JOHNSON
Artist Statement
There are moments in time during everyday observation that strike me as symbolic or significant as images of culture and aesthetic combined. It's the on going story of human existence in the natural, domestic and industrial environments that interests me and how we find solace in nature while pursuing all that technology can provide.
Artist Biography
Glenda was born in Australia, lives in Briagolong Victoria, and works as an Art Facilitator for people with a disability. Glenda has a Diploma of Art and Design from Caulfield Institute of Technology and Diploma of Education. Her artistic inspiration comes from her physical and emotional environment while her favourite medium is printmaking using lino or drypoint etching on Perspex. Glenda has exhibited with Freestone Press Printmakers and the Briagolong Art Gallery members group exhibitions.
Glenda JOHNSON
RIGHT TOP Twitter Dreaming, 2020 Drypoint etching and carborundum on paper 43 x 50cm (image) Courtesy the artist
RIGHT BOTTOM Burnt Out, 2013 Etching on paper (edition 7/20) 19.5 x 29.7cm (platemark); 28.5 x 37.7cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
22 GILLIAN KLINE
Artist Statement
The Moon has fascinated human kind from the beginning of time and continues as a source of inspiration to artists worldwide. Living in my rural environment the Moon and its phases have become a part of my everyday life and inspires my current work. As humans we reflect, hope, grieve, love and fear the world around us and our part to play in it. We walk with the fragility of light reflected on us and try to navigate our way. For Walking with the Phases Moon, I use a lino cutting, relief technique on Silk Cut lino, printed on fine pale-grey Japanese paper in three different but connected images to convey the phases of the moon reflecting a changing landscape and the endlessly changing actions of humans, that make their mark upon it.
Artist Biography
Gillian Kline was born in Melbourne in 1954 and currently lives and works from her home-based Printmaking Studio Freestone Press in Briagolong, Victoria. Gillian is an artist whose interests are in narrative and mood that she conveys through representations of light, seasons and the environment around her. She uses a variety of printmaking techniques, including relief and intaglio to realise a range of works on paper. Gillian has exhibited at the Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale with a solo show Print and has been involved in a number of group shows both locally and in Melbourne with the Freestone Printmakers.
Gillian KLINE
God of Carnage – Tsunami, 2011 Colour reduction linocut on paper (edition 1/5) 55 x 35cm (platemark); 70 x 50cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Purchased with the assistance of the Gippsland Art Gallery Society, 2013
23 Gillian KLINE
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT From the series Walking with the Phases Moon White Moon Night, Scar Tree, End of the Road, 2020 Linocut on Silk Cut Lino printed on Japanese handmade paper 55 x 38cm (each) Courtesy the artist TAMSYN LENNÉ
Artist Statement
Doilies and Dragons—This two-plate print was created during a workshop with master printmaker Martin King. I was experimenting with soft ground on a copper plate, into which textured objects (such as the doilies and leaves) can be pressed, and the impression acid etched onto the plate. The dragon was me playing around with foreground images, dry etched onto an acetate plate. Never Say Nix—This piece was my first experiment with acid etching on a copper plate. There is both fine line etching (through a bitumen hard ground) and aquatint for shading. I chose the Phoenix as a symbol of resilience under pressure, and renewal, and the title is a play on the saying 'never say never.'
Artist Biography
Tamsyn was born and educated in Melbourne and has lived in Maffra for more than 20 years. She has no formal art training but has enjoyed many creative hobbies. Tamsyn often combines acid copper etching and drypoint acetate etching in her printing process. Tamsyn draws inspiration from her family, pets and fantasy themes, and her works are characterised by a sense of fun and whimsy. She has taken part in past exhibitions with the Freestone Printmakers.
Tamsyn LENNÉ
RIGHT TOP Doilies and Dragon, 2017 Two-plate etching, drypoint acetate and acid copper print on paper 14.5 x 20cm (platemark) Courtesy the artist
RIGHT BOTTOM Never Say Nix, 2016 Acid-etched copper etching print on paper 20 x 24.5cm (platemark) Courtesy the artist
25 ADELAIDE MACPHERSON
Artist Statement
For many years now I have been part of a group who meet once a month to draw the human figure at a private studio in Lakes Entrance. In my current work I have used selected drawings from these monthly sessions as my subject matter to extend and merge this raw drawing material with my knowledge of etching techniques. The prints developed are the result of my own artistic process moving from drawing through and into the medium of an etching. Some prints have been worked closely from the drawing and feature the collective aspect of staged model and gathered artists at work, while other etchings are a blend of the original drawing material, collected photographs and my own imagined redesign. Drawing through the surface of hard ground on copper plate I have built up the image with a series of small regular marks to create a rhythmic range of tonal blacks. A variety of mark making has also been used under aquatinted plates with the intention to add expressive texture and tonal depth.
Artist Biography
Visual artist Adelaide Macpherson lives in the township of Bruthen, East Gippsland. She received a Bachelor of Fine Art from South Australia College of Advanced Education in 1985 with major studies in Printmaking /Drawing and in 1989 completed a Graduate Diploma of Education at Ballarat College of Advanced Education. In 2010 Adelaide found an affinity with working printmakers at Freestone Press where she has continued to develop her interest in various Etching techniques through workshops and studio days alongside her private studio practice in Bruthen. Her work reflects a strong drawing base with subject matter ranging from the landscape to the human figure. Adelaide has held solo exhibitions and has exhibited in group shows both locally and in Melbourne. Her work has been acquired in public and private collections.
Adelaide MACPHERSON
Bridge of Separation, 2015 Two-plate copper plate etching and aquatint on paper (edition 5/20) 19.6 x 24.6 (platemark); 27.1 x 39cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
26 Adelaide MACPHERSON Adelaide MACPHERSON
Drawing Nick, 2020 Feast, 2020 Etching on paper Etching and aquatint on paper 48.5 x 56cm (sheet) 50 x 76cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist DEBORAH MILLIGAN
Artist Statement
This work draws together a number of threads that emerged in my practice in 2010. In that year Uncharted Territory—a large scale, multi-panelled painted work—spoke of charting a course through time and space while experiencing the journey as separate moments, each complete within itself. From the same exhibition, the Regions of the Heavens series of paintings looked at the heavens as a place of profound mystery and reverence, a place we tentatively try to grasp, while our understanding gradually evolves over time. By 2014 I had moved the large scale multipaneled form into printmaking and started to experiment with combining drypoint etching, monotypes and salting. Space Dust from the Dark Sky exhibition in 2014 used this technique to explore our place in the universe—one where we are connected yet dispersed, ephemeral yet unending. I pushed the technique further in a portrait of my partner in 2018, and now use what I have learnt in Celestial Bodies. Like Uncharted Territory the multiple panels of Celestial Bodies imply that we can only touch little bits of the heavens. The scale of our universe is too all- encompassing to comprehend. All we can do is segment it, compartmentalise it and try to make sense of small pieces. This work presents a view of the universe that is dynamic, glorious and ever-evolving. An infinite, timeless ‘burst’ of creation.
Artist Biography
Deborah Milligan is a contemporary visual artist working mainly as a painter and printmaker. Born in Melbourne in 1961, she has lived in the small town of Briagolong, in Gippsland since 1993. Deborah initially studied Graphic Design at RMIT. In 2000 she then did a Painting Major in Visual Arts under Pat Waters at East Gippsland TAFE. She continued exploring painting with the Briagolong School of Fine Art from 2001–2005 and attended creative intensives in sculpture and installation with Louiseann Zahra and Lino printing with Heather Shimmen. Deborah also worked as a Creative Arts Facilitator for Regional Arts Victoria from 2006–2016. Deborah has exhibited locally and in Melbourne and has had two solo exhibitions at the Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale - The Deepening (painting) and Dark Sky (painting and printmaking). In 2011 Deborah joined Freestone Press and has exhibited consistently with them as well as attending their printmaking workshops with David Frazer, Heather Shimmen, Cameron Fraser, Wayne Viney and Martin King. In 2015 Deborah and her partner Colin Little established Littlemilligan. Through this partnership they design and create sculptures, furniture, homewares and artworks, including major public art works in Sale and Yarram. Deborah MILLIGAN Deborah often explores painterly and experimental techniques in her Celestial Bodies, 2020 Monotype print on paper printmaking. She is inspired by the heavens, deep space, the universe and the 97 x 111cm invisible energetic connections between us all. Courtesy the artist
28 GAIL NOBLE
Artist Statement
I have always been drawn to the subject of still-life in the work of many of the world’s great artists, in particular the works of Cezanne. When my interest in print-making, using the technique of linocut, began to develop a decade ago I wanted to continue drawing inspiration from still-life arrangement in my own work. Consideration needed to be given to the difficulties of using cutting tools on lino to create detail and precise line and this led to the arrangements I used being restricted and being scaled up from the initial drawings of an intended work. I gradually began to play with altered perspective of the chosen and enlarged items in setting up an arrangement. As my dexterity with the tools increased, I became more adventurous in using patterned cloths and various items that required more taxing cutting of the lino. The clearing of most of the lino on a block provides the opportunity, once the print is taken, to apply colour and tonal definition to the work by hand painting with water colours. I have particularly become interested in the use of tertiary colours and these, combined with the strong line definition of the black printed outlines has added a bold look to my works.
Artist Biography
Gail Noble was born in Melbourne, Australia. On moving to Gippsland in 1980 her love of the environment, landscape and art expanded. Within the last decade Gail has established her own art practice using the technique of lino print. Colour, composition and harmony largely define her works of arranged domestic items depicting a snapshot of beauty and tranquillity in time. Gail has exhibited regularly with Freestone Press during the last ten years.
Gail NOBLE
Snowberries, 2019 Hand-coloured linocut print on paper (edition 2/3) 31 x 30cm (platemark); 33 x 31.5cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Purchased, 2019
29 Gail NOBLE Gail NOBLE
Drying Out, 2019 Gumnuts, 2020 Hand-coloured linocut print Hand-coloured linocut print on paper on paper 30 x 30cm (image) 30 x 30cm (image) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist JENNY NOONE
Artist Statement
I have been involved in printmaking since 2010 as part of Freestone Press. I am on a human journey and my work is a reflection of that journey, an expression of the “human condition”. I create my images using basic materials and a simple process; lino, carving implement, black ink and paper fed through a hand turned press. The simplicity and segmentation of the process allow me to incorporate my practice into the every-day, while the meditative aspects satisfies my soul. The image, if successful, is a revelation and a pleasing gift. Progress is not linear, struggle and failure is part of the process, however practising “art” opens me further to what is beautiful in the world. My ‘invention” of the image and the process of “birthing” it helps me with the reconciliation of my subconscious and conscious existence. The print making convention of naming the work and inscribing the work with the name, links the visual to the literary, a visual poem inviting/guiding the viewer to untap/unpack their own subconscious around the image and the words.
Artist Biography
Jenny Noone was born in Leigh Creek South Australia in 1962. She currently practises printmaking in East Gippsland, Victoria, exhibiting regularly with the Freestone Printmakers group. Her work is an exploration of “what it is to be human”. Images are created by the simple technique of relief block print making. The medium, method and process are all part of the artist’s exploration and journey. Jenny's work is represented in the Gippsland Art Gallery permanent collection.
Jenny NOONE
Safe as Houses, 2013 Linocut print on paper (edition 7/20) 21.4 x 30.3cm (platemark); 125 x 100cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
31 Jenny NOONE Jenny NOONE
Corded Garlands of Decay, 2019 Decay, 2019 Linocut print on paper Linocut print on paper 115 x 90cm (image); 125 x 100cm (sheet) 41cm x 41cm (image); 70 x 70cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist VANESSA (NESS) POWER
Artist Statement
Upon discovering various natural spaces within Gippsland, I was particularly drawn to the Dooyadang (Avon) River. It was here after so much literal and metaphorical moving and exploration I finally felt like I had found home. Although the piece has personal connections to my feeling of home and therefore feeling at peace, I had hoped for viewers to connect via the title At Peace with Transience and continue to look deeper into the etched image and find their own peace amongst the one thing that we can depend on, change.
Artist Biography
Vanessa Power was born in suburbia Melbourne, after studying art in various regional areas and travelling she found a home in Gippsland. Gippsland was where her art practice became a strong and regular part of her life. Vanessa has combined art practice with teaching art both privately and in schools. Having a space surrounded by the stunning and diverse nature of Gippsland regularly informs her work. Over her artistic career, Ness has employed a variety of different mediums to realise her diverse range of works. Vanessa has exhibited in local regional galleries in group shows and has held two solo exhibitions.
Vanessa (Ness) POWER
At Peace with Transience, 2015 Copper-plate etching on paper (edition 2/20) 19.5 x 24.6cm (platemark); 26.8 x 38.7cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
33 FIONA REYNOLDS
Artist Statement
My fascination with sambar deer came from a series of photographs taken with a night vision camera set up on my bush property. Catching glimpses of these animals at night came with mixed feelings of wonder and despair. By night they took on a magic appearance, I could see them as creatures from a fairytale but by day their presence was one of destruction. By day these cloven hooved creatures tread heavily, making deep tracks that zig zag through the bush, eating, breaking and trampling the vegetation. For my two prints I have used carborundum on acetate, printed on paper with black ink to represent the bush at night illuminated by the moon. I wanted to show how the sambar deer can be seen as an enchanting animal, an animal out of context, a view distorted by the moonlight but with the hunters entering the story we are brought back to the reality of their real impact on the land.
Artist Biography
Fiona Reynolds was born in 1956 in East Brighton, Victoria. She completed a Tertiary Orientation Program in 1974 gaining top student for the year. She studied at Victorian College of the Arts Diploma of Visual Art gaining a Trustee Drawing prize. She left Melbourne in 1978 for Gippsland and attended East Gippsland TAFE in 1995 and The Briagolong School of Fine Art continuing to study Art. She now lives in Briagolong where she practices her art, printmaking and mixed media works. Currently she is working with carborundum on acetate plates. Her immediate surroundings of natural bush, rural landscape and traces of life past and present are an inspiration for her work. She has exhibited in commercial galleries in Melbourne and regional galleries in Gippsland. In 2002 Fiona was a founding member of the Briagolong Art Gallery and has exhibited there regularly ever since. Fiona was awarded 1st prize, in the exhibition Different Dimensions, Bairnsdale, which included work acquired by East Gippsland Shire and an artist in residency on Rotamah island. She has exhibited regularly with Freestone Printmakers and participated in their group projects and workshops. Fiona has work in the collection of Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale. Fiona REYNOLDS
Moment of Wonder, 2013 Drypoint on carborundum with chine collé and hand-colouring on paper (edition 7/20) 28.4 x 37.7cm (platemark); 28.4 x 37.7cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
34 Fiona REYNOLDS
Full Moon Rising, 2020 Carborundum on acetate print on paper 124 x 51.5cm (sheets, overall) Courtesy the artist MAXINE SALVATORE
Artist Statement
With this work I am aiming to show something of the fascination that ‘artefacts of power’ exert over us. Incongruent Beauty—This print is of a decoratively engraved cuirass (breastplate) with its hammered lace edge fashioned from hardened steel. Last Exit—In a cemetery, an aristocratic family’s private chapel is barred by a locked, beautifully wrought gate.
Artist Biography
Australian artist Maxine Salvatore is best known for her moody photo intaglio prints. Photography is Maxine’s passion, and her practice embraces the exploration of 19th century photographic processes. After moving to Gippsland in 1989, Maxine studied visual arts at East Gippsland TAFE, and Interactive Multimedia at Vic Uni TAFE. As well as working and exhibiting regularly with the Freestone Printmakers, Maxine has had numerous solo and group exhibitions, and has participated in printmaking and photographic workshops - both in Australia and overseas. Maxine’s work is held in a number of public collections, including Gippsland Art Gallery, and various Australian State Libraries.
Maxine SALVATORE
Bad Reality, 2013 Two-plate photo-polymer etching and chine collé on paper (edition 7/20) 29.7 x 20.8cm (platemark) ); 37.8 X 28.4cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
36 Maxine SALVATORE Maxine SALVATORE
Incongruent Beauty, 2020 Last Exit, 2020 Photo intaglio on paper Photo intaglio on paper (edition 1/6) (edition 1/6) 17.5 x 17cm 17.5 x 13.1cm Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist LORRAINE SCOTT
Artist Statement
As an abstract artist I became interested in how to help people understand my work. I work with a lot colour to explore my feelings and thoughts and I wondered whether there was another way to explaning my art. During some research I came across asemic writing and every thing fell into place. "Asemic writing is a wordless open semantic form of writing." The word asemic means having no specific semantic content or without the smallest unit of meaning. With the non-specificity of asemic writing there comes a vaccum of meaning which is left for the reader to fill in and interpret. All of this similar to the way one would deduce meaning from an abstract work of art. By using the colour as a monoprint then etching with the asemic writing I hope that I have been able to paint my story.
Artist Biography
Lorraine Scott was born at Yallourn, Victoria and she currently lives in Sale. Tertiary educated at the Moe High School, she trained as a registered nurse, also has a Diploma in Studio Textiles as well as as some units in the Diploma of Visual Arts. Lorraine is an artist that uses colour in an abstract way to convey her emotions and thoughts and to somehow tell her story. Her ispiration often comes from the love of her family, the enviroment and the spiritual elements of the world at large. Her favourite mediums are oils and using printing in a contemporary way. She has been in many group exhibitions in Sale, Morwell, Leongatha, Basirnsdale and Melbourne. She had a solo exhibition at the Caulfield Arts Complex and parterned in an exhibition at Foster Gallery. Her work is held in private and public collections.
Lorraine SCOTT
Fire Storm, 2013 Linocut and monoprint on paper (edition 7/20) 35.6 x 20cm (platemark); 38.1 X 28.5cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by Freestone Press, 2016
38 Lorraine SCOTT Lorraine SCOTT
Too Many Words, 2020 Words and Echoes, 2020 Monoprint and drypoint on Monoprint and drypoint on acetate print on paper acetate print on paper 30 x 45cm 30 x 45cm Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist VALMAI TODD
Artist Statement
My immediate world is the inspiration for my artwork. I generate my ideas from interaction with family and friends, my garden filled with native flowering shrubs rich in colour, the Australian bush here in Gippsland where I live and beaches where I have regularly camped. Although I have worked in a wide range of mediums, I have been inspired, technically, by the Melbourne-based artist Jazmina Cininas, and in recent years been absorbed in the complex process of colour reduction lino printing. I am particularly interested in the role that narrative can play in developing my prints, establishing a scene with figures within a landscape, allowing a story to unfold in the eyes of the viewer. I am influenced by the Art Nouveau period. Principles of colour and texture are important in my work.
Artist Biography
Valmai Todd was born in Melbourne and after graduating in art education from Melbourne University moved to Gippsland in 1974, where she taught art and related creative studies at a number a schools and colleges. In 1986 she undertook Post Graduate studies in textiles and design. Since 1986 Valmai has exhibited in group and solo shows in Melbourne and Gippsland including Kingston Gallery, Preston Town Hall; 45 Downstairs, Melbourne; Stephen McLaughlan Gallery, Melbourne; Brunswick Street Gallery, Fitzroy; Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale; Maffra Exhibition Space, Maffra; the Ponds Gallery; Cowwar Art Space, Cowwar; Latrobe Regional Gallery, Morwell; East Gippsland Art Gallery, Bairnsdale and the Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong. Her artworks are in public and private collections.
Valmai TODD
Costal Connections, 2015 Colour reduction linocut on paper (edition 2/20) 20 x 25cm (platemark); 27.1 x 39.1cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
40 Valmai TODD
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT Grandma’s Basket, 2019 Colour reduction linocut on paper 40 x 30cm (image) Together, 2019 Colour reduction linocut on paper 40 x 30cm (image) Treasures, 2020 Colour reduction linocut on paper 40 x 30cm (image) Courtesy the artist LOUISA WATERS
Artist Statement
My practice is concerned with the space where history and landscape intersect. Where memories and discourses produced by people and places create ideology, and how ideology transforms land and informs notions of place. My current work explores the transformation of the Gippsland, Gunnaikurnai landscape since colonisation through narratives of fire, critiquing European fire regimes.
Artist Biography
Louisa Waters’ work researches forgotten histories related to the Gippsland region in Victoria, where she has lived most of her life. Waters engages with the historical traces and cultural legacies buried within landscapes as a means of developing deeper understandings of how these spaces are inhabited today. Her mixed media works include printmaking, installation, photography, drawing, video and artist books. Waters has been exhibiting professionally for the past five years, showing her work in Galleries such as 45 Downstairs, Melbourne; Peter MacCallum Gallery, Melbourne; Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale and Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong. Waters has fifteen years’ experience working in visual arts, education and local government sectors, both teaching and facilitating arts programs, research projects and art events. Waters is currently working towards completing a Doctor of Philosophy (Arts) with Charles Sturt University.
Louisa WATERS
Sentiments from Briagolong Correspondent 1888 (from Genius Loci, Freestone Press, 2015), 2015 Silkscreen on paper (edition 2/20) 21.9 x 19.8 cm (image); 39 x 26cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
42 Louisa WATERS Louisa WATERS
Ruins to ruination I, 2020 Ruins to ruination II, 2020 Giclee print on paper, Giclee print on paper 26.9 x 20cm 20 x 26.9cm Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist PAT WATERS
Artist Statement
In mid 2019 I spent time in the Northern Territory and the East Kimberley area of Western Australia. I filled two sketchbooks and took huge numbers of photographs of a landscape that moved me enormously. The orange, pink, purple and white rocks against the cobalt blue sky and the dirty green scrub against the deep red soils were an artists delight. The ancientness of this landscape and the changing light casting deep shadows imbued it with a mystery that stirred my soul. My initial composite sketches done very quickly while on the move were converted into monotypes. These later more abstract works Top End I and Top End II are layered prints culminating in a “rorschach” approach which created surface textures and unpredictably rewarding outcomes.
Artist Biography
Pat Waters graduated from RMIT in 1969 with an Associate Diploma of Fine Art majoring in painting. Over the following fifty years Waters has exhibited successfully in Melbourne and Gippsland and has artworks in regional galleries and private collections across the country and overseas. Her teaching career also spans decades including coordination of Visual Art and Textile Diplomas at the East Gippsland College of TAFE. In 2001 Waters established the private Briagolong School of Fine Art working as the principle teacher for nine years. Her art expertise led to multiple art study tours to Indonesia, England, France, Italy and Spain. Colour symbolism and gestural abstraction were early painting directions but a deep interest in Jungian psychology inspired figurative works for several decades which drew on ancient Greek mythology and personal dream imagery. Strong political comment followed relating to Australia’s treatment of refugees which dominated her exhibition work for 10 years. Moving in 1977 to Briagolong, a tiny Gippsland town in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, began a love affair with the Australian bush. The history of this primeval environment plus the colours and forms set up challenges the artist is still responding to today.
Pat Waters The Infinite Well: A Retrospective was held in the Pat WATERS Gippsland Art Gallery in Sale in 2018. At Five O’Clock in the Afternoon, 2015 Solvent transfer print with collograph on paper (edition 2/20) 25 x 19.9cm (image); 39.2 x 26.8cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Donated by the artist, 2015
45 Pat WATERS Pat WATERS
Top End I, 2019 Top End II, 2019 Monoprints printed with Artisan water- Monoprints printed with Artisan water- based oils on paper (unique state) based oils on paper (unique state) 21 x 26cm (top image) 21 x 26cm (top image) 22 x 31cm (bottom image) 22 x 31cm (bottom image) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist LORRAINE WATT
Artist Statement
Regardless of the subject matter it is mainly the form, patterns, contrast and lines which are of interest to me. Furthermore, I often find the abstract nature of the details of the subject matter quite exciting. For this work I initially used waste packaging where three dimensional forms were flattened and used as relief plates to produce printed images. These images then inspired the final artwork in which I have used crushed tracing paper and stencils from waste cardboard printed on handmade paper that I made in Japan using traditional materials and methods.
Artist Biography
Lorraine Watt was born and raised in a small town in central Victoria in 1957 and currently lives in Maffra, Victoria. She studied for a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Social Work in Canberra and Melbourne and practised social work in Melbourne. The environment has been an interest all of her life and an inspiration for her arts practice. She first studied art at the Briagolong School of Fine Art in 2003 and commenced printmaking in 2010 at Freestone Press, Briagolong. Her work has been exhibited at Briagolong Art Gallery, Briagolong and East Gippsland Art Gallery, Bairnsdale.
Lorraine WATT
Moments in Time I, 2020 monoprint on handmade paper 17.5 x 17.5cm (image); 43 x 34cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist
46 Lorraine WATT Lorraine WATT
Moments in Time II, 2020 Moments in Time III, 2020 Monoprint on handmade paper Monoprint on handmade paper 17.5 x 17.5cm (image); 43 x 34cm (sheet) 17.5 x 17.5 cm (image); 43 x 34cm (sheet) Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist ARTIST PROOF THE COLLECTIVE SPIRIT OF FREESTONE PRESS 15 August—18 October 2020
Gippsland Art Gallery Wellington Centre, Port of Sale 70 Foster Street Sale Victoria 3850 T +61 3 5142 3500 www.gippslandartgallery.com
ISBN: 978-0-6485486-3-8 (pbk.) Edition: Digital catalogue
© 2020 This catalogue is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism, or review as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any means or process without prior written permission of the publisher.
Gippsland Art Gallery acknowledges the traditional custodians of this land the Gunaikurnai People, and we pay our respects to their Elders, past and present.
COVER IMAGE
Gail NOBLE Snowberries, 2019 [detail] Hand-coloured linocut print on paper (edition 2/3) 31 x 30cm (platemark); 33 x 31.5cm (sheet) Collection Gippsland Art Gallery Purchased, 2019
Gippsland Art Gallery is proudly owned and operated by Wellington Shire Council with support from the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria