Tasmania; the final destination of a curtailed journey wandering Australia. With a world pandemic enforcing travel restrictions, I retreated home to Northern New South Wales. ‘Painting Tasmania’ evolved as a vicarious pleasure when the world was sent into lockdown and isolation.
Reliving my time in the endemic wonderland became an antidote to states of chaos, infecting society. A land of sanctuary and the last frontier for many species, these paintings transport me to a place of refuge. Becoming my companions these works are fuelled by recollections, sustained by emotions, and abstracted through processes of remembering.
‘Painting Tasmania’ is a tribute to the resilience of the natural world that allows us to exist.
…As we walked into the forest with packs full of food, water and shelter, the land shifted from dry sclerophyll to wet, green, mossy rainforest. Over-saturated with green and brown, it was easy to see the slow moving black snake, but the echidna was only visible from the sound of scratching wood. The distant calls of the yellow-tailed black cockatoos grew louder and it was as if we walked into a wall of honey. Leatherwood flowers in full bloom provided a banquet for the excitable birds. Soon we were on mountains with snow and thousand year old conifers, mystified by the multitude of tarns and fresh water. Instantly saturated when the rain came, but still excited to see Tasmanian Devil scats. We set up camp and as I painted, our neighbour came to investigate, the largest platypus I have seen, bold and unafraid. The sun gave pink kisses as the night fell into out tent and wisdoms of wombats emerged. Blue Gums with pink bark surrounded us and at dusk, a devil walked in for dinner. The mountain cradled us as we slept underneath a star soaked sky. Delicate birds made sure we weren’t a threat and I can’t stop thinking about those Leatherwood flowers…
Emily Imeson 2020
Click here to view – Online Exhibition
