23 March - 15 April 2023
about the exhibition
Elisabeth Kruger has refined her aesthetic over a career spanning four decades and her detailed works rely on an extensive set of technical and artistic skills. She is a master of oil paints, building layers through the application of thin glazes of paint to create deep visuals with subtle textures. For some years, Elisabeth has been creating luscious and immersive paintings depicting the natural world and in particular the flowers, vegetables and fruits that she grows in her garden. A background in textile art and quilting continues to influence the way Elisabeth views her surroundings, often drawing comparisons between the techniques of this craft and the organic structures and patterns of vegetation. In this exhibition, she turns her gaze to the ocean as she captures glimpses of the coast in exquisite detail. These works reflect on her own spiritual connection with the environment reminding us of the enduring power of the ocean to heal and provide solace. She writes, “Greys of bark and stone, rust and eau de nil lichens, bright dairy-farm greens and deep and bright blues of sea and sky. Everywhere sparkling glints of sunshine and surf white foam. The clear echoing birdcalls can only come from there. Not here, where its more sulphur crested, black and white and dry. Everything changes though, and the coast is growing into the future.” Compositional devices are carefully considered in her paintings and, in particular, the use of the sphere – a shape synonymous with the earth and the cycle of life, a reminder always of our connection with the natural world. She likens the space of raw linen around the painted scene as similar to rest beats or bars in music, “a moment to breathe, to sigh before resuming, or for emphasis.” Though her subject matter deals exclusively with nature, the human element is always present.
Elisabeth Kruger was born in Noumea, New Caledonia and lives and works in Canberra. She graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts (majoring in Printmaking) at the ANU School of Art in 1985. In 1989 she was awarded the prestigious Moët & Chandon Fellowship and following this was granted an Arts Council residency at Besozzo, Italy. In 2010, a major survey exhibition of her work (from 1988-2010), curated by Jenny McFarlane was held at the Drill Hall Gallery in Canberra. Since her first solo exhibition at the Craft Association of the ACT in 1978, she has exhibited extensively in Australia and internationally. Her work appears in many major public and corporate collections including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, Cruthers Collection of Women’s Art at University of WA, Artbank, ACT Legislative Assembly, ANZ Bank and Moët & Chandon (Epernay, France).
