Artist draws inspiration from lush environment

Surrounded by drawings of foliage and trees from her solo exhibition, artist and Head of the School of Arts at Southern Cross University Associate Professor Jan Davis will give an artist talk at the Grafton Regional Gallery on July 23.

The exhibition, new works on paper entitled folio/foliate, is a series of black and white, ink and wash drawings of foliage and trees.

Professor Davis is a previous winner of the national Biennial Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award, Australia's richest drawing prize run by the Grafton Regional Gallery to promote innovation in contemporary drawing. She has work included in the National Gallery of Australia, the Australian National Library, the state libraries of NSW, Victoria and Queensland, universities around Australia and the Lismore Regional Art Gallery

Professor Davis, a visual arts academic who continues making drawings, prints and books, has lived in the Northern Rivers for the past 17 years. She said folio/foliate explored a particular landscape through drawing, and was about being in the lush environment of northern New South Wales.

"The works are fragments of sensation rather than detailed botanical representations. They are very subtle works, growing out of observation over a long period of time, reflecting the sounds, smells and changes of light," she said.

"In the exhibition, the pages are paired together, or in bookbinders' parlance, they are paired leaves."

Professor Davis said the gallery talk would focus on the evolution of the exhibition and its relationship to an earlier solo exhibition of digital prints developed from photographs. The lecture would also include feedback and questions.

Folio/foliate is at Grafton Regional Gallery, Fitzroy Street, Grafton, until August 14. The artist talk, which is free and does not require booking, is at the gallery at 12 noon on July 23. Gallery tours or further discussion with the artist in the gallery café (phone café to book seat) are available after the talk.