Opening of 'Mixing it...' Art Exhibition at the Gympie Regional Gallery

_{30 January, 2010}

Sign Up for free e-mail updates!

Opening of the "Mixing it..." Art Exhibition 

As a member of the Federal Parliament, I am often privileged to be asked to participate in many important events but today I am more than honoured and delighted to be part of this very pleasant and exciting occasion – the opening of this Exhibition of the very fine art of two wonderfully capable and talented local artists Jean McAuley and Narelle Webber. 

Not only does it give me the opportunity to visit Gympie again, something I have enjoyed since I went to school in nearby Biggenden, but it is always a pleasure to help promote the talent that abounds in regional communities like Gympie.

Over recent years my visits to the Mary Valley have been tainted with conflict and protest as I have tried to do my bit to help save the Valley from desecration at the hands of an uncaring government.  Today’s visit is much more uplifting as it brings out the joy and goodwill that is so much the real ambience of the region.

And for all of you – you are in for a feast of fine art.  The exhibition is rightly named “Mixing it…”, and with 71 individual paintings, large & small, abstract and what I might call ‘straight’ – with subjects so varied from animals, to people, to flowers and landscapes, some with joy, some with intensity, some with emotion, but all with dedication & ability, we are certainly in for a treat of artistic grandeur. 

 An extra bonus for me in participating in this exhibition is that one of the featured artists, Narelle Webber, is actually the wife of an old school friend of mine.  And it’s great to realise that an old mate of mine had the good sense and taste to end up with some one of the intelligence, intellect and ability of Narelle!  He clearly married well above his station! 

I’ll spare us the embarrassment by stating just when we were in school together, but needless to say it was a long time ago.

Jean McAuley and Narelle Weber are both proud Mary Valley residents and that pride is on display in their paintings.

It has been a long road for both these artists.

Jean McAuley as a student was always top of the class in art.  She did not however have the chance to study art formally until in her thirties in 1976 when she attended the Queensland College of Art at Seven Hills for one night a week for most of that year.

Life went on its course, and at 45, she was widowed. She was living at Anakie in the Central Highlands and went back to work putting her art “on hold” again.

In 2003, she moved to the Gympie area. Here she joined the Village Group of Artists at Imbil and discovered her love of acrylics. In 2004, she joined FOG ( Friends of the Gallery) in Gympie. Then in 2005, she became an active member joining other artists most Tuesday mornings for lessons and a get-together.

Jean has a natural flair for abstract painting and enjoys them immensely. She won the Abstract Award in the Mary Valley Art Show, 2006 and again in 2007.

She also enjoys designing contemporary paintings.

While living at Lagoon Pocket, Jean has had the opportunity to attend several weekend workshops in Gympie and also to attend one day workshops with Lyn Fraser Roberts and Lizzie Connor. A two day workshop with the late Brian Allison at Imbil remains her most significant learning experience.

Just three years after Jean moved to Long Pocket Narelle and Geoff Weber completed their new home next door to Jean.

Like Jean, Narelle’s painting experiences began long before moving to Gympie.

Her extensive experience over many years led Narelle to create the Painters @ Mudgee plein air painting week in country New South Wales – an event that has artists travelling from as far a field as New Zealand to attend. 

For 8 years Narelle has continued with her involvement in this art festival which has become well known for the quality of instruction in all mediums of painting. 

Nowadays, Narelle finds delight in painting flowers and animals of all sizes – in fact Narelle has recently been painting the pets and farm animals for her neighbours. 

Although I haven’t a skerrick of artistic flare myself, and Geoff Weber can attest to that from our primary school days together – of course that would change if I attended one of Jean & Narelle’s demonstrations next week - I have been privileged to travel, as I’m sure many of you have, to visit some of the world’s most famous art galleries – Paris, London, Rome and our own National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.

However, I must confess the only artwork hanging in my living room in Ayr, North Queensland are by local artists, in similar styles to Narelle and Jean’s work.

As a Queenslander I am always attracted to artists who seek to tell their story about their lives and their country.

In fact, just a few weeks ago I had the honour of unveiling the latest work of the aboriginal painter, Barbara Sam, in my office in Townsville.  What attracts me to her work is the way she uses her god given talents to tell the story of her people and her land.

After I received the invitation to be with you today, some information was sent through to me about the featured artists today and there is one paragraph from that information I would like to read to you this morning.

“Narelle and Jean have enjoyed many pleasurable experiences travelling, painting the outdoors, smelling the Eucalypts and always being inspired to paint on. The subtle colours of the bush are delightful and special.”

It’s the spirit in which it’s painted that I believe give’s Jean and Nerelle’s work that something extra.  Their work might not hang in Louvre (well not yet!) but it does have the same attraction as the Louvre for those locals who love their part of the country.

Even to someone as ignorant as me, Jean & Narelle s work is inspiring and clever, and it’s for this reason that I look forward to seeing Jean and Narelle’s work shown in more galleries throughout Queensland.  Sadly, all too often the only way young people in Queensland experience the country is through this genre of artwork. 

It is will great pleasure that I officially open the “Mixing it…” art exhibition, featuring Jean McAuley and Narelle Weber, and presented by the Gympie Regional Art Gallery and the Gympie Regional Council.

More Speeches