A solo exhibition 25 years in the making is set to launch at Bathurst Regional Art Gallery [BRAG] this weekend featuring one of the region's most respected artists.
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Hill End-based artist Luke Sciberras has channelled multiple interpretations of various Australian landscapes into Side of the Sky, which will be held concurrently between BRAG and Campbelltown Arts Centre [CAC].
The exhibition features 50 works spanning 25 years of Sciberras' practice, with a strong focus on Hill End and Wedderburn, the two places he has primarily called home throughout his career.
"While it looks like a comprehensive catalogue of my work, it's really only around five per cent of it, but these works are connected by the shared theme of place and how each place has inspired me," Sciberras said.
"The exhibition is accompanied by a 400-page book, which serves as a companion piece to the exhibition."
Alongside his interpretations of the Hill End and Wedderburn landscapes, the exhibition also features Sciberras' surveys of scenes around Wilcannia, Broken Hill and many more iconic Australian locations.
Sciberras said every place he's visited has taken him by surprise and has enchanted his art in many different ways.
"No two localities are the same," he said.
"When I first went to Hill End 25 years ago, I knew I'd be able to paint it forever because the seasons are so extreme.
"As I'm sure everyone in the Central West would know, summer, autumn, winter and spring are their own distinctive beasts, and these extremes never fail to evoke different moods."
Sciberras said Hill End is an ideal location for creative people as it accommodates residents who are eager to think outside the box.
"It's a very small town, but it doesn't suffer fools," he said.
"Hill End has not only provided me with a huge amount of material I've needed to be a painter, but its been a launching pad for me to branch off in several directions.
"I can reach either the outback or the coast rather quickly, you can see just about everything the Australian landscape has to offer in a day's drive heading any direction."
Sciberras said many of his works require a great deal of immersion within the surrounds, which allows his subjects: the land, the trees, the waterways, the animals: to come to life.
"The tone of a place is always different, as the light, vegetation, geography and geology of a setting is never uniform," he said.
"While my style of painting doesn't vary much from scene to scene, the interpretation is always different."
Sciberras hopes BRAG visitors walk away from the exhibition with a great deal of inspiration and respect for the natural environment.
"Painting is like a religious experience for me. It's like cooking, sex and gardening all rolled into one; it combines mind, body, soul and heart," he said.
Side of the Sky will be on display at BRAG and CAC until August 7. For more information, visit www.bathurstart.com.au.
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