This is my second month in the residency at Saint Cloche Studio. Part of that time has been spent driving across Australia to paint in nature. We have taken a route that includes places where relatives once lived and worked, and places where other inspiring artists have painted. Brad Cole and I took with two cooperative dogs drove from Sydney to Curlwaa and Wentworth, on the Murray River, to revisit a painting site from last year. We spent several days on an orange farm on the banks of the river. One morning was spent exploring and drawing on the Perry Dunes. We drove on through the Riverina region through the Adelaide Hills, and on to Port Pirie and the Napperby Gorge. Luke Sciberras has painted this beautiful and inspiring dry creek bed, and a great grand mother of mine was buried in the cemetery in the town. At the foot of the Flinders Ranges, the Gorge is a remarkable cache of rusty rock and various native flora & fauna.
“Being human is not a gift to be assumed…” said a young Native American Indian woman in conversation with Debora Rose Bird regarding her essay on Country and the Gift for the Sydney Environment Institute, ” …it is a gift to be developed.”
I am humbled by the discipline of painting, observing and seeking out these landscapes; reading about them, and the people who pass by for a short time or for a long time.
I hope my paintings encourage people to explore, like those who came before, and to honour, like those who came before.
Joanna Cole 