“Remembering the once lustrous Great Barrier Reef”

Medium: Oil on canvas - texture rich impasto

Size: 32 cm x 45 cm x 5cm

Artist’s Statement:

The painting was created as a direct response to the degeneration and decline of The Great Barrier Reef. We need to acknowledge the importance of global warming and the rising sea temperatures, which have destroyed a once vivid and rich colour palette into grey. The painting reflects back to the once proud time the Reef was held in reverence due to its complexity in colours and radiance.

It is my hope that the painting sparks conversation around the swelling environmental topic, which, is bitter sweet in attracting tourism yet is a shadow of its former life through human's actions.

“Boat on sunlit sea”

Medium: Oil on aluminum panel

Size: 30 x 18 cm

Artist’s Statement:

A small alla-prima painting, winter sunlight and a quiet boat alone on water. The painting was an observation of the way a low sun catches the water in dazzling glitter, with the solitude of the boat appealed to me as an evocative focus.

“Sisters”

Medium: Framed acrylic on canvas

Size: Height 66cm x Width 97cm x Depth 5cm

Artist’s Statement:

Memories from youth to old age thread around our whole lives. Ribbons of joy, goodwill, kindness, love,secrets and sometimes the tangled mess we find ourselves in. It's love on a spectrum, the bright and the shadow. Ribbons that tie our memories from different perspectives.

“The Layering of My Life”

Medium: Acrylic, gesso, on canvas

Size: 103.6 cm (h) x 78.2 cm (w) x 5 cm (d)

Artist’s Statement:

This painting is a layer upon layer, creating a story form the memories that only hold special memory to me. The birth of my babies, the loss and love of my grandparents, the embrace of my mother, when I fell in love -real love, the first time my heart was broken, the choices, the chances and the 'just do it and don't look back's'.

With every stroke there was smiles and tears, laughter and pain all rolled into together. Each mark represents a moment in my life; Each row a story from my past; Each layer a new beginning.

This is the layering of my life. An abstract reflection of the moments that are my life.

“Gumoy (spawning of the reef)”

Medium: Acrylic on canvas

Size: 100cmx55cmx1cm

Artist’s Statement:

My great grandfather, grandfather, and father were all great hunters that provided for their families. Daily hunting for Kangaroos, emus, bandy-coots, crocodiles, goannas, snakes, and seasonal bush fruits.

My memory of my father passing down hunting knowledge of how to catch fish out on the reef at night. He told me the best way to do that was to hunt during the darkest night, pitch black. But out on the reef with the movements of the animal, it illuminates setting off lights everywhere, making it much easier to see and catch the animals.

“Emerald Shore”

Medium: Acrylic on canvas, framed

Size: W 45 x 45cm, H 45 x 45cm, D 4cm (including frame)

Artist’s Statement:

'Emerald Shore' is inspired by childhood memories of playing all day at the beach, swimming in the sea, exploring the rocks and looking for mudskippers in the mangroves.

“Impermanence”

Medium: Oil on canvas

Size: 90cmx90cmx5cm

Artist’s Statement:

Impermanence is about shifting times where vague concepts of self and experience are illusively projected onto half remembered realities.

“Nostalgia”

Medium: Stained Glass

Size: Height 46 cm x 99cm length x 3cm depth (frame) , 7 kg

Artist’s Statement

I remember looking out my Nana's old lead light windows in the morning and seeing the sunrise when I stayed there as a kid,

Remember ... the old records ,the good music, the good times, the good friends.

Remember... being told there was a man in the moon, looking for shooting stars and comets, and wishing on the brightest star.

Nostalgia

“Remember Whens and Keepsakes”

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Size: Height: 121.5cm x Width: 91.3cm x Depth: 3.7cm

Artist’s Statement:

Vanessa Cochrane is a contemporary artist from Moranbah. Her work is photorealistic, painted with meticulous details and uncannily accuracy.

Her goal is to inspire those who see her work to look more carefully at the world around them, to discover beauty in unusual places.

This artwork is a depiction of 'the bar fridge'... the silent sentinel, custodian of remember whens and keepsakes. Its face is covered with a collection of tiny glorious moments frozen in time, that remind us of good times.

And on top, 'the stereo', capable of making a grown man cry with the tunes that make him reminisce and feel emotion.

The stereo is surrounded by 'keepsakes' and 'thingamajigs' put there because you always know where they are.

“Depth of the Shallows”

Medium: Charcoal, soft pastel on paper

Size: H 60cm x W 90cm x D 3cm Framed

Artist’s Statement:

Leisa Cook uses multiple charcoal mediums experimenting with textures and highlights of soft pastels to create 'Depth of the Shallows'.

This artwork gives a different perspective that our environment can teach us how to manage our ever changing lives if we look closely enough.

The intertwining boldness of the mature mangrove roots signifies our deepest, most treasured memories while the vibrant green growth of the mangrove seedling commands your attention and reminds you to keep moving,learning and expanding on your goals to accomplish where you want to be in life. With each tide brings with it a chance to wash away all the negatives to help new growth, make new memories and ofcourse bring new encounters, possibilities and hope.

“February”

Medium: Colour pencil

Size: 85cm x 105cm x 4cm

Artist’s Statement:

My New Year's resolution lead to a decision to make my memorable moments more positive. To do this I chose to focus on the wonderful things in life. These are my daily February memories of the special, fun or sometime sad experiences. I chose to relish beautiful moments like sunsets, celebrations, movies, creating art and teaching. I decided that even small things like finding my son's baby shoe and seeing beautiful butterflies were magic. These are my sweet memories.

“Home at Last”

Medium: Acrylic on canvas

Size: 51 x 61 x 3.5 cm

Artist’s Statement:

My work examines Queensland's heritage, featuring historical buildings and artefacts which still exist today in our community. The artworks explore the inherent feelings embedded in these relics which connect us to another time and pose questions about their former owners or inhabitants. I am interested in portraying life in our historical remnants and using it to evoke stories and memories from the viewer.

Home at Last depicts heritage-listed Maye's Cottage in Logan - a little piece of the past surrounded by the sprawl of modern suburbia.

“Hard Day's Work”

Medium: Watercolour on paper

Size: 48 x 48 x 2 cm

Artist’s Statement:

My work investigates the role of heritage and nostalgia in our future-focused society. My paintings feature Queensland's historical architecture and artefacts which still exist today in our community. The artworks explore the inherent feelings embedded in these relics, which connect us to another time and pose questions about their former owners or inhabitants.

This painting depicts the North Ipswich Railway Workshops, a heritage site near my home which was the birthplace of rail in Queensland and is now a museum. An architecturally significant place, it emanates the acute feel of heavy industry, lost trades and hard work.

“Shoal Beach at Dusk”

Medium: Pastel Painting on Paper

Size: 44cm x 50cm x 2cm

Artist’s Statement:

During the Covid lockdown period our regular walking spots got extremely busy. To better isolate from others yet stay walking we started doing discovery walks. This included local wetlands, parks at the back of suburbs and quieter beaches. The photo taken for this was on one of those walks. It reminds me of the positives of a difficult time.

I can feel the setting sun on me, feel myself stepping around the old roots of the long dead mangroves, hearing and watching the intersection of the wading birds and forest birds and the sounds of the ocean.

“Ignite The Flame”

Medium: Mixed Media on Fabric

Size: 81cm x 100cm x 5cm

Artist’s Statement:

This textile artwork is centred on the iconic Illawarra Flame Tree. These ancient trees have a distinct Australian history. The inner bark was used by Aboriginal Australians for making fishing nets and the large seeds were a food resource, rich in protein. The tree is found along the east coast of Australia and many are scattered around our locality in their natural bush setting. When they are flowering, they are very eye-catching. They remain leafless when in flower but as their leaves form there is a mass of green. The flame trees are very colourful and when I see them I also think of the iconic song from Australian band, Cold Chisel aptly named “Flame Trees”. It resounds in my memory.

“Fog”

Medum: Ceramic, resin, carpet

Size: 37cm x 45cm x 29cm 2.2kg

Artist’s Statement:

It can be difficult to get up from under the fog of a depression that has no trouble recalling bad memories while the happy ones remain elusive.

This work results from an ongoing experimental technique that transforms an item of clothing into a solid clay form. The burning away of the fibre leaves a delicate hollow structure that alludes to the emptiness felt during depression. Memories are so powerful they can turn a seemingly strong person into a fragile shell.

“4711”

Medium: Glazed ceramic, carpet

Size: 38cm x 44cm x 25cm 8kg

Artist’s Statement:

Something that once brought comfort by its warmth and softness is now cold, stoney, and frozen in time. Your smell still lingers, and your voice echoes in the emptiness. Memories are all that remain.

This work results from an ongoing experimental technique that transforms an item of clothing into a solid clay form. The burning away of the fibre leaves a delicate hollow structure that alludes to the emptiness felt by grief and loss, the clay forming a memory of the fabric that is no longer there.

“Amazoniamind”

Medium: Canson Watercolor Paper 300 gsm Hot press

Size: 87cm x 62cm

Artist’s Statement:

Even if Australia had become my second home, I miss certain features of my homeland.

My name is Sofia Fortunato, also known as Sofi Fortunato. I grew up in Venezuela, and Australia is now my home. Even if Queensland's forest reminds me of Venezuela's forest, there is still something missing in the landscape, the trees, the rivers and in the sea. By using a combination of mixed media, gouache, pencil, and crayons, I brought into paper those little memories I hold from my homeland Venezuela. And inside the illustration, a diverse range of fauna, and flora I don't see anymore but still safeguard in a memory-box inside my brain. With this illustration, I wanted to recreate not only those memories of the fauna and flora, but also capture a moment in my life as a child. A moment I still try hard to hold in my life as an adult, a explorer inner child. The one who still like to climb trees.

“Thoughts Nesting”

Medium: Oil, charcoal on canvas

Size: H 76 cm x W 60 cm x D 4cm

Artists’s Statement:

I paint and draw images of animals, human and otherwise, in close connection to remind us of our connection with nature.

If we don't have nature we don't have us.

The magpie goose (bimgay in Nwaigi up here in NQ) is the herald of both the early morning and the evening - times for remembering dreams and days gone by - memories, beautiful or vague, heavy or muddy.

“Memories: Fun Adventures - So Grateful”

Medium: Mixed Media on Canvas

Size: 43.3cm x 33.3cm frame in glass

Artist’s Statement:

A memory can take me into so many places, instantly. In this painting, this is exactly what I have created in this colourful art piece. I am demonstrating here that my memories have taken me into many bright orange roads and on my journey I have lived in many countries: Colombia, Mexico, Singapore, Indiana (USA), etc. All my lines, circles, dots, etc in my painting can represent either people, places, food, etc. This art piece is full of colours (full of life), which I treasure daily. A memory for me is a lovely thing to be treasured and I carry it in my heart. My memories are fun and I am so thankful that a flower is always blossoming in my heart. This art piece is one big amazing adventure in my life. Thank you for viewing my painting.

“Island Dreaming”

Medium: Acrylic and spray paint on canvas

Size: 40 x 50 cm

Artist’s Statement:

"I've spent a life chasing stories to tell when I am old" - Atticus

Island Dreaming... a story from living in the Whitsundays to pursuing a career in the city. Symbolic shapes and colours represent the personal growth of this transition and memories that were once so predominant disappearing as I learn the art of letting go. The pursuit of chasing stories; as I aspire to live life to the fullest - jam packing life with as many amazing memories as possible. Living in the Whitsundays being one of the most memorable.

“Kookaburra”

Medium: Oil on canvas

Size: Height 50 cm x Width. 65 cm x Depth. 5.5 cm

Artist’s Statement:

Sitting quietly here in the Whitsundays inspires me to paint. Listening to my favourite species, the iconic Kookaburra. With bright coloured oil paints, I like to capture the vibrancy of both the environment and wildlife of the Whitsunday region.

˜We danced from dusk til dawn hey Christine"

Medium: Mixed Media

Size: Height 150cm x Width 102cm x Depth 3cm

Artist’s Statement:

Memories.

Portraying a sense of freedom and the licence to be slightly naughty without guilt.

Experimenting with mixed media to build layers that evolves shape into human/animal form.

Focussing on dramatic colour and movement, leaving a negative space for contemplation.

'I am privileged to be an artist'

“Peace in Paradise”

Medium: Acrylic and collage on canvas

Size: 76.5cm x102cm x 3.6cm

Artist’s Statement:

I like to paint joyful, positive bright pictures that are connected through heart; this is a contrast as it includes a dark side, and news headlines have been placed to express the terror. September 11, 2001, is a powerful memory, a day filled with happiness, peace, and tranquillity. Unbeknown to the crew & guests on board a sailing vessel exploring the Whitsunday Islands, the USA was under attack. It was only when we got back into phone range 2days later that we heard the devastating news that New York had been attacked by terrorists. I remember this feeling of being safe & protected in a bubble, the world could have ended that day, and I would not have known.