No Right Turn - Drawing from Western Sydney 

The fourteen contemporary artists featured in this exhibition were selected because they all use drawing as an important element of their artistic practice and they all share a western Sydney connection. All of the artists were either born, studied or now live in western Sydney. They are:

In No Right Turn

‘Drawing’ is often perceived as an element of ‘process’ or ‘study’, rather than as resolved artworks. No Right Turn proves otherwise by presenting artworks that embody and celebrate technical virtuosity, conceptual rigour and aesthetic flair.

A ‘scientific’ thread has emerged amongst some of the artists: Anne Edmonds showcases pencil drawings of fractured light, Joyce Hinterding includes gold and graphite fractal drawings wired as antennae that produce sound, Catherine O’Donnell creates charcoal drawings with a strong emphasis on architecture and geometric form and Regina Walter exhibits superb drawings of the moon.

Charles Dennington and Carla Wherby both use Google with very different results. Charles’ large charcoal drawings depict a microscopic view of a worm’s head, and Carla’s works are socio-historic pen drawings of people and events. Locust Jones’ work is large and gestural in style, brimming with political and environmental statements; in contrast Matthew Hopkins’ small scale graphic style portrays domestic settings inhabited by beastlike forms.

Both Kurt Schranzer and Drew Bickford evoke the skill of the draftsman. Schranzer presents nautical landscapes with detailed, mechanical implements, while Bickford morphs the grotesque into a fantastical entity. Luis Martinez’s realistic portrayals of suburban homes evoke a sense of nostalgia whilst Kenzee Patterson creates exquisite drawings of everyday objects with a touch of wry humour. David Capra incorporates the flow of a narrative into his delicate drawings, while Tom Polo’s text based works are insights into the power of rejection and self-doubt.