Tough(er) Love – Sept. 18 to Oct. 12 2014

Tough(er) Love – Artists from Eyre Peninsula is not to be missed. Siv Grava’s electrified landscapes, views of Country by Beaver Lennon and the glass and enamelled objects of Cindy Durant, works by sisters Elma and Verna Lawrie, Pungkai, Joylene Haynes, John Baily, Leith O’Malley, John Turpie, Amanda Franklin and Karl James. Comprising new work by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous painters and sculptors – the exhibition reflects the practices of those working out of larger population centres including Port Lincoln, Whyalla and Ceduna, as well as smaller regional communities.

Eyre Peninsula is a tougher place than most in which to make art. The region, so far removed from perceived centres of culture with their audiences, galleries and art schools, demands that its artists be very self-reliant and resourceful. To survive and develop as an artist takes a special kind of commitment. But it gives much in return as a place which offers a sense of freedom from urbanised life, access to landscapes of spectacular beauty and traditional significance, and the knowledge or sense of belonging to this place, known to many as the ‘West Coast.’

In 2010 selected artists from across the region and from different cultural and personal perspectives were invited to explore and express the complexities of this ‘tough love’ affair from which there is ultimately no walking away, no letting go.