Returning to a common motif for me – tree, on a hillside, at sunset. It’s actually quite representative of the countryside around my city, very hilly, distant mountains, lots of old disused and neglected pasture & old trees that are remnants of the ancient forest that used to cover the land prior to European settlement.
The scenery on many of these denuded hills is quite bland during the day, but at sunset they become special and magical, full of golden light and mysterious shadows, and they have a life of their own. Native birds – magpies, cockatoos, rosellas and more – are there in abundance, feeding on the introduced weeds that are running rampant & becoming part of a whole new ecosystem, and kangaroos graze contentedly, watching the occasional interloping human with barely a trace of fear.
In this painting I wanted to capture that sense of nature being in a state of desolation, the trees mostly gone & those that remain are aged and dying, yet it still being compellingly heartbreakingly beautiful in its own way. Rather than place distant mountains marching in the background I wanted the sky only, feeling like its an infinite distance away & letting me be expressive in colours & brushstrokes.
There’s a lone runner, as there was the last time I climbed this particular hill – he jogged past me, eyes down & seemingly oblivious to the incredible golden light of the sunset, headphones on, in his own little world. It struck me as a metaphor for how we as a species are pursuing our own interests in our own little artificial world, oblivious to the harm we’re doing to the natural world that created and sustains us.
“As he runs, the quiet world turns under his feet” is acrylic and acrylic ink on framed 91x61cm birch panel. It’s currently on show at my solo exhibition, “In the distance”, at the WOTSO Health Space in North Strathfield, and is also available for purchase online from the Nationwide Curating website.
