Looking Out Exhibition, return to Wapengo series.Chrissie Cotter Gallery, Sydney.                                

Margaret’s works in this exhibition, Looking Out, are all based on material she gathered last summer on a number of visits to the rugged and relatively untouched far south coast of N.S.W. on Yuin country.  This area held many childhood memories.  A landscape which first gripped her long ago. Her recollection of sunsets, rugged rocks, strong tides and chilling, crisp, pristine water held very strong. In 2021 she excitedly arranged to return and uncover whether her memories were rose tinted.  She wanted to experience this magical place as an adult.  In February 2022 she spent several weeks camping in Mimosa Rocks National Park, clambering over rocks, swimming, exploring, remembering and absorbing this extraordinary environment.  She made numerous sketches, drawings, paintings and photographs.  On return to her Sydney studio, she collates these reference materials and reflects.
Her paintings capture this rich subject matter and are filled with the emotion brought up when vivid childhood memories bump against an adult sensibility bringing a better understanding of the history of custody of land and the responsibilities of care. This awareness permeated her reflections and she chose to paint the landscapes  where she most felt the passage of history both recent and ancient and her momentary presence in this narrative.
 

Gundy                                                      

Margaret has enjoyed many return trips to Gundy in the rolling green hills of the Upper Hunter Valley on  the lands of the Wonnarua Nation. She first came here as a teenager and was taught to ride a horse. She has spent time here over the years enjoying family celebrations, pub nights, crisp morning walks and sunset drinks by open fires with old friends. This peaceful, gentle, rich  landscape inspired these recent works

Maffra                 

Margaret grasped the opportunity to spend a week in the Monaro on the edge of the Snowy Mountains in Southern N.S.W, The shack is a delightful, simple, thoughtfully, architecturally designed cottage sited alongside the Snowy River, The house and barn are attractive to paint as well as the beautifully diverse landscape in which they sit.  Margaret was drawn to the views from the latticed windows of the cottage, the pristine waters of the river, the massive granite boulder outcrops and the spare, windswept hills.  A week of sketching, painting and making in this powerful environment led to a wide range of works produced in the studio.