ENCOUNTERS

My linocut The Nature of Things, 1994 (Collection: City of Maribyrnong), has been included in the upcoming group exhibition ENCOUNTERS at Footscray Town Hall. 

References to fun fairs and sideshows have periodically appeared in my work since I was old enough to pick up a pencil. This is hardly surprising, as I grew up in Blessington Street, St Kilda, a short distance away from Luna Park. The historic Scenic Railway, one of its most enduringly popular rides, provides part of the backdrop to The Nature of Things.

Curated by Lili Belle Birchall, ENCOUNTERS comprises diverse works drawn from the Arts and Heritage Collection of City of Maribyrnong. 

For further information about ENCOUNTERS, go HERE. 

To peruse the exhibition catalogue, click HERE. 

ENCOUNTERS: Key information 

Location: Fitzroy Town Hall, Civic Precinct and Community Hub, 61 Napier Street, Footscray.

Viewing times: Monday to Friday, 8.30am-5pm, from 24 June 2026 - 29 January 2027.

Curator's guided tour: 11am on the first Wednesday of each month (commencing July 2026). Bookings essential via the link below.

Group bookings: Groups larger than 5 people are encouraged to book a tour via arts@maribyrnong.vic.gov.au or by calling 03 9688 0200.

MOONLIGHT SWIM

Pictured top: Moonlight Swim, acrylic on canvas. (Progress view). From the current suite of works provisionally titled Flowers of the Femmes Fatales. 

In this instance, the flower associated with my protagonist, namely a water lily, appears as a stylised motif on her bathing cap. Its design was adapted from a vintage knitting pattern that was sourced online. (See below). 

On my morning walks by the Yarra River in Melbourne I pass a similar ‘No Swimming’ sign to the one portrayed in the painting. 

Directly below are a series of developmental views of Moonlight Swim.

The work is a descendent of two early works (pictured below), both of which share similar iconography: The Third Time, 1995, oil on canvas, 50 x 40 cm (collection: the artist) and Not Drowning, 1996, oil pastel, 160 x 120 cm. (Collection Grafton Regional Gallery, NSW. Acquired through the Jacaranda Drawing Award 1996).