28 June-23 July
To be opened by Michael Toms, from Warrnambool Astronomy Nights
on Friday 30 June 6-8pm

Eleven South West Printmakers Des Bunyon, Delia Crabbe, Sue Ferrari, Ben Fennessy, Britt Gow, Jean Gleeson, Jodie Honan, Marion Manifold, Liza McCosh, Ruby Richardson, Maree Stewart have chosen the inspiration of “Sky” as the theme for this latest exhibition at The F Project Gallery, simply called ‘Sky’. The exhibition opens on Friday 30 June and continues until 23 July.

Printmaking techniques include monoprints, etchings, woodcuts and linoprints. This artform of original printmaking is often confused with the process of copies made from original works such as paintings, also referred to as prints. The artist printmaker creates an original artwork, sometimes a unique state, where only one print is made, or sometimes a print is available in limited editions created from etching plates, wood blocks or lino blocks.

As is always the case with a group collaboration, the interpretations and the printmaking techniques are varied and create a wonderful exhibition.

Des Bunyon
The sky as in ' blue sky 'is an illusion created by a combination of sunlight and air molecules.We humans have created a myriad of stories that reflect our interaction with the sky. We have gods and deities from every culture that come from the sky or reside somewhere beyond the outer reaches of the atmosphere where sky becomes outer space. We observed how birds could fly freely and unencumbered in the sky and sought to do likewise. We used its existence in our cultural responses through artisitic expression both literary, visual and musically. I chose to look at metaphorical references such as' Head in the Clouds ',Pie in the Sky ' ' Ladder to the Sky ' and ' Black Cloud 'etc We have populated the sky with many superheroes such as Superman. The sky is like the observing self that is always there, making room for both difficult and enlightening thoughts and feelings.

1 & 2

3 & 4

5 & 6

Head in the Clouds 1/5 | Etching | 250x320 | $195
Imagine- Above us only Sky 1/5 | Etching |250x320 | $195
Pie in the Sky 1/5 | Etching |250x320 | $195
Look! Up in the Sky! 1/5 | Etching & Collage | 250x320 | $195 | SOLD
Ladder to the Sky 1/5 | Etching | 250x320 | $195
Black Cloud 1/5 | Etching | 250x320 | $195

Marion Manifold
The Lonely Sea and the Sky works are inspired by John Masefield’s poem “Sea-Fever” (below) which reminds me of Warrnambool’s foundation and legacy from pioneering early settlers, and the hardships and sometimes desolate joy of those who arrived by sailing ship.

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.
John Masefield’s "Sea-Fever"

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8, 9 & 10

11

7. The Lonely Sea and the Sky 6 | Linocut & Wash | 560x760 | $400
8. The Lonely Sea and the Sky 3 | Linocut & Wash | 360x560 | $300
9. The Lonely Sea and the Sky 2 | Linocut & Wash | 360x560 | $300 | SOLD
10. The Lonely Sea and the Sky 1 | Linocut & Wash | 360x560 | $300
11. The Lonely Sea and the Sky 7 | Linocut & Wash | 560x760 | $400

Maree Stewart
I pause to notice and contemplate the wondrousness of everything that comes to us through the sky enabling the existence of life. From drifting into imaginings the Sky Wanderer emerges from the vastness of the sky and commences its journey…

12

13

Jodie Honan
Across Gunditjmara Country in south-west Victoria, sky fills half the world, cohabiting with the volcanic country and the celestial and atmospheric bodies. This series of small collages use past lino prints reconfigured into distilled skyscapes to capture the massiveness of volcanic hills against the vast sky.

All prints are linocut print collage on Somerset 300gsm and all $50

14. Pair of Shadowy Hills- Day Sky | SOLD
15. Bumpy Hill- Day Sky
16. Small Shadowy Hill- Day Sky
17. Side of Shadowy Hill- Day Sky | SOLD
18. Big Shadowy Hill- Day Sky
19. Shadowy Hill- Day Sky
20. Big Hill- Day Sky
21. Pair of Hills- Day Sky
22. Blue Moon | SOLD
23. Two Hills and Meteor Shower- Night Sky
24. Shadowy Range and Blue Moon- Night Sky
25. Small Range with Meteors- Night Sky
26. Shady Hill and Blue Moon
27. Hill and Meteor Shower- Night Sky | SOLD
28. Shadowy Range- Night Sky | SOLD

Ruby Richardson
A cloud collectors atlas combines images collected while cloud watching (always cloud watching) with the photo-graphic method of cyanotype printing. This set of prints is influenced by a slight leaning towards surrealism and a healthy obsession with the shape of clouds.

29 - 38. Hand coloured cyanotype print on 638gsm rough press paper | 160x160 | $90
29. SOLD
30. SOLD
31. SOLD
32. SOLD
33. Available
34. SOLD
35. SOLD
36. SOLD
37. Available
38. SOLD
39 - 42. Small hand coloured cyanotype prints on 638gsm rough press paper | $50
39. SOLD
40. SOLD
41. SOLD
42. SOLD

Ben Fennessy
Living at Killarney, I get to see amazing sky views which I’ve attempted to represent in these three-layered mono-prints – on Upo paper and two sheets of glass. (Prints 2 & 3) On April 24 at 5.17am, I was lucky enough to wake up and see the Southern Lights – Aurora Australis – a lifelong dream. (Print 1) As a child, I was fascinated by dioramas at the Melbourne Museum, (now the State Library). My first year at the National Gallery School was in the basement of the museum so I had access to view these magical three-dimensional displays again. Last year, I saw some 17th Century examples of images on glass layers at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and was inspired to try to make the sky prints on sheets of glass so they could be transparent and 3D.

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Britt Gow
The universe was not created for the human mind to understand, yet it is the nature of the human mind to try to make sense of it. From prehistoric humans noticing how the stars resembled sparks of a fire to the concept of a larger being draping a pin-pricked black cloak over the earth and religious texts conjuring the Almighty moving the heavenly bodies from above the firmament with his own hands, we struggle to comprehend the immensity of space. Carl Sagan, an American astronomer and cosmologist, helped mere mortals to visualize the vast scale of the universe by saying “…the total number of stars in the universe is greater than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the planet Earth” and “our planet is nothing more than a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam”. It is inconceivable to most of us that we are as insignificant and inconsequential as an atom on a mote of dust, yet it is thus in both space and time. Our fleeting lifetimes are a nanosecond, and all of human existence is a mere second, in the 24 hours since the earth’s formation. Rather than responding with despair and nihilism, I hope my artwork promotes reflection on the beauty and wonder of nature and reminds us of our connection to the earth on which we stand. When you consider the engineering genius to conceive and construct wind towers, I am optimistic that you can share my humility in the face of Mother Nature, the peace and tranquility felt under a starry sky and the exhilaration of the winds that carry clouds above our vast horizons. These artworks are created with two separate printmaking processes. The first layer is a hand-pulled monotype, in which ink is rolled or painted onto an acetate sheet and then put through a press to transfer the ink to the damp paper. The second process is using a collagraph plate, created by scoring, collaging, texturing and shellacking cardboard. The plate is then inked, wiped, polished and put through the press a second time to layer the two images

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46. Rural Skies | Unique State Monotype & Collagraph Print | 380x560 | $600 | SOLD
47. Nebulous | Unique State Monotype & Collagraph Print | 380x560 | $600

Jean Gleeson
These works represent the ‘gravitational pull’ of the moon, its effect on tides and also in the sense of hypnotic calm I feel when I gaze at it.

48. Gravitational Pull I | Blind emboss, chine colle & lino on silk | 500x610 | $150 | SOLD
49. Gravitational Pull II | Emboss, chine colle & lino on silk | 500x610 | $150 | SOLD

Delia Crabbe
I’ve always loved the patterns of raindrops on windows, and the blurring & distortion of the view they can cause. This year my ‘Sky’ focus became clouds & rain, and the close up view of raindrops on glass. I learnt how to print onto metal & some plastics, and so have experimented. The end result is mainly earrings- perhaps a more functional print product than my usual (I’ve got too many artworks for walls)! One that’s a bit of fun in any case!

50 & 51

52 - 57

Liza McCosh
In my artistic practice I have constantly drawn on the elements of nature to inspire imagery that comments on the environment. In particular, the sky with elements of air and water, has been a continual theme I have turned to in representing how all of nature is interconnected and integral to all life cycles. The Arterial series of prints attempt to represent the merging of sky with other aspects of nature: sky, earth, water and vegetation in a constant cycle of interdependence and regeneration. In constructing the artwork, I have used imagery from my painting and photography alongside digital media and transfer printing techniques; layering surface on surface leaving an imprint of nature’s elements and my employed media to emerge in the final images. Acknowledgement: This body of work was supported by a Sustaining Creative Workers Grant, a Victorian Government initiative delivered through Regional Arts Victoria. Dr Liza McCosh 2023

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62

Sue Ferrari
From my hilltop home wind is the unseen force that constantly transforms the skies, creating a continuous flow of fleeting experiences.

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63. Caught in the Breeze | Mono print on silk fabric | $320
64. Turbulence | Mono print on silk fabric | $380