This & Other Worlds

“…a great drawing is either confirming beautifully what is commonplace, or probing authoritatively the unknown.”
Brett Whiteley, 1967

As a means of art making, drawing is both intimate and direct. More than any other technique, drawing has the capacity to reveal the link between the mind and hand of the artist, the immediacy of its processes enabling the finished work of art to reflect its creator’s thoughts and gestures. In terms of media and format, drawing offers a multitude of possibilities. The simplicity of the materials of drawing, from pencil to watercolour, means that they are almost always at hand. Made on paper as well as on numerous other supports, drawn images range from the miniature to wall-scaled. Drawing also provides a space for exploration – where questions of perception and representation can be tested and where the imagination can be freed.

This & Other Worlds features works made during the past ten years by artists for whom drawing is an essential and consistent part of their practice. The selection is representative of the energy and inherent diversity that characterise contemporary drawing activity in Australia. Varied in technique, style, scale, medium and format, these drawings share a strong emphasis on representational imagery. Grounded in the study of the surrounding world, they chart a course between observation and imagination, communicating in a language that is universally familiar.