A passionate love of the landscape drove Piers Bateman to paint his beloved country from the heart of the red centre to the coastal scrubland; quintessential Australian images. In September 2015 Piers Bateman tragically died in a boating accident off the coast of New South Wales, a sad loss to the art world within Australia and Internationally. On Friday 12 May, Red Hill Gallery, Brisbane will open its doors for the Exclusive Retrospective Exhibition of Bateman’s artwork.
Piers Bateman undertook several trans-Australian painting expeditions, bringing us the vivid paintings of remote Australian landscapes for which his work is known. He featured in over sixty major solo exhibitions throughout his lifetime, both in Australia and aboard. His artwork hangs on the walls of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Melbourne University and the conference room in the Australian Embassy in Washington, to name just a few.
An avid adventurer, Bateman travelled abroad often to sail and paint in areas such as the Greek Islands, the Mediterranean, and much of Europe. Bateman had the knack to make a home wherever he found himself. He was invited as the Australian representative at MAC 21, a contemporary Arts Fair in Spain and later in China, was offered and accepted a position at the Shanghai Institute of Visual Art (S.I.V.A.) as an Honorary Professor. Prior to this, the Australian Embassy in Washington hosted a large collection of Bateman’s Australian works.
To quote Piers Bateman “Art is to me the most important thing after survival needs, by art I include, of course, all the arts. Art is the seduction of the senses. Art is to be explored, enjoyed, questioned and collected.”
Red Hill Gallery Director, Margaret Campbell-Ryder, reflects on Bateman’s talent for re-creating the nuances of Australian landscapes. “Many artists try to replicate our Aussie bush and sea scapes on canvas, but few achieved the delicate balance that Piers was able to deliver, time and time again,” Campbell-Ryder said. “The way he blended similar colours to create depth and mood around sweeping and still lands or windy seas is a skill that he owned.”
The Piers Bateman Retrospective Exhibition will open on Friday 12 May and continue until Sunday 4 June 2017.
For further information about the gallery and its represented artists, please visit redhillgallery.com.au
Red Hill Gallery is located at 61 Musgrave Road, Red Hill, Brisbane QLD, and is open seven days.
