Benalla Art Gallery has a new gallery shop exhibition on display.
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It features a selection of works by Albury-based artist Karen Brown, and will be exhibited throughout April.
Featuring both framed and unframed drawings in coloured pencil, graphite and stippled ink, the exhibition showcases Ms Brown’s finely detailed observations of the Australian landscape.
Inspired by the quiet beauty of the everyday bush, her works celebrate gum leaves, native flora and local wildlife.
Through careful observation and delicate mark-making, she captures the texture, character and subtle complexity of natural forms, inviting viewers to pause and look closely at the world around them.
Karen Brown draws inspiration from the ordinary, the obvious and the often-overlooked.
Her highly realistic works encourage a renewed appreciation of the small details found in both natural and man-made environments.
Gently Resting, 2024 by Karen Brown.
Although Ms Brown has worked across many mediums, including acrylics, watercolour, oils, pastels, inks, printmaking and sculpture, drawing remains her primary passion.
Using graphite pencils, fine-liner pens and coloured pencils, she creates works that verge on the photographic, rewarding close inspection with rich textures and subtle colour.
In recent years, Ms Brown has expanded her practice to include workshops and private tutoring, sharing her coloured pencil techniques and advocating for a broader appreciation of the medium within the arts community.
Benalla Art Gallery director Eric Nash said Ms Brown’s drawings demonstrate an extraordinary level of skill and sensitivity.
“In works like this, her meticulous mark-making transforms fallen leaves into something quietly monumental, revealing subtle shifts of colour, texture and form that are so often overlooked, he said.
“There is a calm precision to her practice that rewards close looking and reflects a deep respect for the Australian landscape and its everyday beauty.”
Karen Brown is a Resident Artist at Wangaratta’s Art Gallery on Ovens, and her work is held in public and private collections.
All works in the Gallery Shop exhibition are available for purchase through the pop-up Benalla Art Gallery, by calling 5760 2619 or by emailing gallery@benalla.vic.gov.au.
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