ACCOMPLISHED local artist Emilie Tseronis has had her works put on a special featured display at Tea Gardens’ Galleries in the Gardens, after a special opening on Saturday 4 October.
The prevailing subject of her works are the local banksia flowers, a flora of significant meaning on several levels, as described by the artist herself, a past president and curator of the Galleries in the Gardens.
“Our coastline saw sand mining in the 1970s between here to Gladstone that nearly wiped the banksias, so what we see now is mostly new growth,” Emilie told News Of The Area.
“Despite threats from human industry and development, the banksias have mostly grown back, making them a symbol of resilience.”
“There are 726 types of banksia in the world, 725 of them here in Australia, with the last being in South Africa, where the proteas sprung from a common botanical ancestor.
“The banksia is iconic, and very important in Aboriginal culture – the blossoms were used to sweeten rain water for drinking, the cones used as fire starters and fire keepers, and the bark and leaves have medicinal qualities.”
The banksia has a long and storied history that extends well beyond the influence of its namesake, HMB Endeavour resident botanist and later Sydney colony patron Sir Joseph Banks.
The featured display included finished pieces in acrylic on canvas, as well as highly interesting ‘studies’ done in ink or pencil on paper. All the distinct and seasonally-juxtaposed life stages of the banksia have been studied, evidently bolstered by a Renaissance-style research by Emilie.
Emilie’s favourite work was “the one that gave me the most trouble, to the point I actually put down the brush and left it for a while… but was able to conquer the task in the end.”
The multiple works took her seven weeks to produce, and the gathering at the opening was given the golden opportunity for direct Q&A with the artist.
The Gallery’s artworks are not just randomly hung, the work of the curator is an artform in and of itself, as this current feature demonstrates.
“We can try to look after what we have here at home, even if we cannot do anything about the events going on in the wider world,” Emilie said.
Other GiG artists’ work will follow this featured display later in October and in early November.
By Thomas O’KEEFE
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