The guest artist this year is Nikki Burns, who has been exhibiting in the annual exhibition for a number of years and has been a previous Simply Drawing Prize winner. Based in Millthorpe, Nikki has a love of drawing and painting with water colours, where she takes inspiration from the rural life surrounding her in her small home town. Nikki has been drawing since a young age and has a special affinity for drawing animals,
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The guest artist this year is Frank Hodgert who has been exhibiting in the annual exhibition for a number of years and has always been a crowd favourite. Based in Glenmore Park, Frank spends a lot of time in the areas surrounding Portland and has painted a number of Portland streetscapes over the years along with landscapes of the surrounding natural beauty, in both watercolour and oils. Frank, who has taught art as well as
Read moreNatasha Daniloff is an Australian artist specialising in drawing, painting, mixed media and installation. Her work embraces a broad thematic framework referencing her Russian heritage, Iranian cultural motifs acquired when her family lived in Iran and fuses these with her experiences in the Australian landscape. These themes are explored through layers of materials and meanings. The recipient of several prestigious residencies – Bathurst Regional Gallery Hill End Residency and Launceston City Council’s A.I.R. – she
Read moreGuenter Barth was born in East Germany and started painting at the age of 16. In 1957, with his new wife, Edel and his paints, he fled from communist Germany into Berlin. They migrated to Australia in 1960, but it wasn’t until 1994 when he retired that he could follow his dream of devoting his time to painting. He has travelled extensively throughout Australia and has been inspired by the contrast and beauty of Australian
Read moreANNIE JOSEPH is a long time supporter of the Portland Art Exhibition. She loves painting and drawing the landscape. “There is never any shortage of subjects, and am lucky to be able to work in my wondrous studio surrounded by beautiful hills and valleys of Old Bowenfels at Lithgow.” Her heartland is further west though, out in the central west where “the sky comes down to your boots!” Annie mostly works in charcoal, pen and
Read moreNicole Foxall is a colour junkie who loves injecting hefty doses of pigment and vibrancy into her paintings. Her mission is to express and create from the world around her and bring colour and happiness to people's walls. Nicole's painting process is loose and spontaneous with each piece a unique translation of the subject. Nicole works out of a backyard studio which she shares with her husband who is also a painter and creator. She
Read moreTo celebrate the 40th Anniversary, the society has chosen to choose four feature artists. JOE PENN For over 30 years he has been painting full time, working in a variety of mediums. He is well known for his Impressionistic oils of landscapes, portraits and figures, he is currently Vice President of The Royal Art Society. LESLEY O'SHEA I am fascinated by faces. The challenge to portray an individual’s personality and likeness in paint is the passion that
Read moreDennis Claydon – A Storyteller in pastels Dennis moved from Albury about 2 years ago and he and his wife Gae have now made their home in Orange. Dennis is a horticulturist by trade (in charge of Randwick Racecourse, Sydney Showground, Dreamworld and many others) and he commenced painting in 1993. The rest they say is history – as he had been winning major awards ever since. Some of Dennis’s achievements are: • Best Painting
Read moreWe had a great time meeting our Feature Artist Wanda Driscoll the other day, a range of her wonderful paintings will be exhibited at the Portland Art Purchase Society's exhibition. A short video from the meeting can be viewed below. // Post by Portland Art
Read moreThe focus of his paintings is often around the fringe dwellers of outback society and their eccentricities. His endeavour is to catch the spirit of these people and their landscape with all its idiosyncrasies. A strong undercurrent of dry humour finds its way into many of his works. Eris has a great interest in the history of the outback and the history of art itself. He reads extensively, especially biographies of the past greats, whether
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