Orara Valley is the Star of Gallery’s Latest Exhibition

Two of the Coffs Coast’s best-known artists – Terri Butterworth and Guy Gilmour – share their passion for the beautiful Orara Valley in the latest exhibition at Coffs Harbour’s Regional Gallery which opens on Friday, February 14, at 6pm.

‘An Artist’s Garden: Terri Butterworth and Guy Gilmour’ reveals how these artists interpret the Orara Valley’s landscapes through their own distinct lenses.

This body of work by Guy Gilmour amounts to a retrospective of his instantly recognisable figurative works from the past 20 years. “This particular collection of landscapes reflects the riverside growth of eucalypts and the camphor laurel trees edging the cleared paddocks and the Dorrigo mountains in the west,” said Cecile Knight, Gallery Curator. “While this exhibition is an enjoyable record of the Orara Valley, it is also a collection of work from a maturing and increasingly confident artist who is respected for the integrity of his work.”

Guy’s paintings have been acquired by a number of significant public institutions, including the Regional Gallery, as well as private collectors. He has also won multiple art prizes including a Judge’s Commendation during the Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery’s STILL: National Still Life Award 2017.

According to Guy: “What makes me want to paint what I paint is the light – specific light on specific things. But I also like to make well balanced compositions. So my paintings aren’t spontaneous responses – I spend time arranging them and painting them.”

Terri Butterworth’s pure, abstract paintings immerse the viewer in a layered experience of place, that includes her Glenreagh garden. She is a teacher of Visual Arts and Fundamentals of Design at North Coast TAFE and has been a mentor and educator to may local artists in the region. Terri was an exhibiting artist in last year’s Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery Still Salon and a finalist in Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery’s STILL: National Still Life Award 2017.

“In this body of work, I use ‘An Artist’s Garden’ as metaphor for the imagination and its world of infinite possibilities, together with the influences of my own garden and all of its wonderful arrangements,” says Terri, who is pictured above in her studio.

Hands-on activities for adults and children will be available during the exhibition and Terri Butterworth will also host a number of immersive art workshops. See the Gallery website for more details: www.coffsharbour.nsw.gov.au/gallery

‘An Artist’s Garden: Terri Butterworth and Guy Gilmour’ will run until April 18 2020.