Patrick Sutczak
We are delighted to announce the emergence of three new pieces by one who is a vital part of the fabric of Raincoat. Patrick Sutczak is the other third of the running of this place. He has been, even before the lease was signed, our inspiration, our anchor, our friend and our curator extraordinaire. He has an uncanny, intuitive approach to what goes where, sets out the most disparate of groupings on the floor, and when all those art works over which he has cast his spell move upwards onto the walls, suddenly the whole place starts to hum ! The only thing missing has been the continuation of his OWN art practice, which has taken a back-seat to many other things going on in life.... but, finally he announced that he just had to answer to "that need to put hands on paper" .. things were moving and we waited and here you have them : three pieces, generated by the essential elements of our existence - Birth, Life and Death.
Called "Emergence","Realization" and "Dissolve", they are delicate tracery in acrylic pen on archival paper, bearing perhaps resemblance to calligraphy - at any rate, telling their own story - but also with something universal about them !
Richard Barker
A rare opportunity remains to view and purchase original Eggmen Comic pages, finely rendered in pen and ink on paper, an expression of Richard's quirky, brilliant mind and its observation of the Human Race! Each drawing is presented at A3 size and priced at $125. Please enquire, either by email or at the Gallery for access. For those interested in exploring the series further, a small selection of Eggmen comic books is also available at $25 each.
Chris Morgan.
Chris Morgan's new Pieman Piece is called "Limb" .. Moody, groping beneath the surface of the subject matter and in touch with that "undercurrent" that is always with you when out and about in the Tasmanian Wilderness... This is what brings so many to our shores - and what draws many to Chris' work.
Sarah Walters
Sarah continues to inspire as our dedicated producer of extraordinary artworks. This time we have some quirky "pod houses".. clothed in some pretty spectacular glazes that she dreams up! .. and like her other well-known small houses, they seem to move and speak to each other.
In all of Sarah's ceramic pieces you will find her unique feeling for the use of unusual and beautiful clays and for the application of exciting glazes. Sarah's cards, too, are still with us - with some new, hand-painted designs joining her gel cards !
Prices are as marked. (All of her works have been made in Tasmania, are available for immediate purchase and can be taken home straight away). If you were there at the Opening on Saturday 21st, March, you would also have experienced her inspired violin playing - definitely a cultural treasure !!
David Pullen
Three of David Pullen's exquisite watercolours were are on our walls last month. All three impressed those who saw them with their fine detail and expressive use of a paint brush. This one, of Hobart's Elizabeth Street Pier, is still with us, so we thought another period of exposure might be a very good thing! David was born and educated in Launceston, and his art-work, even as a high-school student, was remarkable! Now living and working in Canberra, he has begun to concentrate on a serious return to using the gifts that we, as his teachers, recognised in him so many years ago. David's connection to family here and his love of the island where he grew up bring him back to Tasmania whenever he can get here !! We are hoping to see more amazing work on his next visit!!
Ryan Rivers
A rare talent has come into our space .. Ryan Rivers is well worth a climb up those 22 stairs of ours!
Ryan's passion for living creatures shines from within these two endearing portraits of Tasmanian green Rosellas, feeding and chattering. Ryan watches with the keen sight and understanding of a highly-tuned artistic intellect. We are excited to have these water-colour and ink pieces here and hope to follow a career that must surely take off soon. The fine brush strokes link to the oil paintings of the best of the Old Masters; the ambience is from a Renaissance tapestry .. but the image is of the present, here in Tasmania.(Click on image to see all of it).
Audrey Bilston
Last month a very young and exciting talent came to the Gallery. Audrey Bilston's four images of Paris, drawn from her mind's eye on an iPad at age 17 were amazing! Since the beginning of that exhibition, Audrey's involvement with painting, with Raincoat and with learning anything and everything about Art that all of our generous "older" artists have to offer has been a joy to behold.. From her growing body of work, we chose this delightful bunch of flowers in their purple vase. Like everything Audrey creates, this has life; it has energy and it attracts the viewer to investigate and think about something unexpected.
Frances Malcomson
We welcome Hobart-based print-maker, Frances Malcomson to the Gallery with two exquisite prints of urban weed-growth in neglected gardens in her home city. Frances observes "the tension between human ordering of nature and disordered weed growth.... Through printmaking directly with weeds gathered from neglected sites," she comments on "the contemporary disconnect between person and nature". The images here are from two gardens in Evans Street, Hobart - part of the area intended for demolition to make way for the proposed Stadium. Frances will be joined by colleague and fellow print-maker, Julie Todd, in or next exhibition's "Solo" Show.
Jack Boyes
We are delighted to welcome back our youngest "Emerging Artist", Jack Boyes.
Now in Year 12, Jack is an intelligent and inspired photographer - searching for inspiration, knowledge and new directions. "Wingspan", the work which was up in the last Show, was central to a whole year's work in 2025. This is one of the pieces from that body of work. "Red Emperor" has already been sold (and framed), but its new owner was happy to have it displayed here. This print is one of 5, so there are still 4 prints (unframed) available for purchase. (click on image to see the whole work ...)
Tania Glanville
Tania Glanville's new still-life,"Tea with Nanna", arrived here last week. Her work always injects that feeling of incredulity into the space - the viewer is drawn to it in wonder. A very accomplished artist was magnetised by it this morning.. "That porcelain!!", she said,"It's incredible - nearly impossible to do! ..one little shadow out of place and it doesn't work! I don't believe this !" .. come and see for yourself!
There is, besides, that lovely feeling of nostalgia - as if Nanna herself is likely to appear with an extra cup !
Gardenia Palmer
Gardenia Palmer's exciting and vibrant painting style will be easily identifiable to those who saw her
Solo Show - "My Lady Of Flowers" - here last year. These two small works give out more than their fair share of excitement and joyous "Light"... Not based on Flowers, they have an organic feel about them, perhaps harking back to her early paintings of hop-fields in the north-east... but, like all Artwork, these images would mean something different to every different person. Gardenia calls them, simply, "Chaos" and "Order". We call them Wonderful !
Garry Billing
Garry Billing has been a compulsive and inspired Artist (and Musician!) throughout his long and wonderful life .. Where art is concerned, it has been amazing to watch his experimentation and his growth in personal stature as a remarkable and self-assured painter. Later this year, we believe there will be another solo show here of Garry's works .. This small landscape is perhaps a foretaste of what is to come. Nocturnal Fiesta is an enchanting glimpse of what the sky might be getting up to when we are not watching!
Wal Sutherland
Wal Sutherland is a name that has been linked to that of Robert Ikin - and to George Richardson and Blair Gamble - for many years. The four of them began their careers as artists together, were well-known in Tasmania and elsewhere and continued their connections to each other throughout their lifetimes. Now proudly 90 years old and just as alert and creative as he ever was, Wal has been a bit of a beacon in this Gallery, bringing good humour and a touch of class into the space. Happily, he readily agreed to hang some work in the same Exhibition as Robert .. Two of the pieces he brought in are free and easy motor-bike drawings. At left is "Rider's Edge" - where he has captured an image of a sassy rider who caught his eye once. That one is still for sale, but the other one has already been sold : "Solo Rider" - a self-portrait with his beloved BMW. The other work, "Stage In A Cage"- depicting, in a completely different and very controlled style, a historical Stage Coach (behind bars for safe-keeping, in Tunbridge), has also been bought ... but you do have another three weeks to come and enjoy them here, all three!
Kathleen Uko
We are very happy to welcome Kathleen back to our walls .. and very happy to make the connection, through her father and wonderful artist, George Richardson, between her, Wal Sutherland, Gardenia Palmer and Robert Ikin. Art has a way of flowing through communities and families. In Kathleen's case, living with Art has always been just "normal" .. for her to produce this beautiful work, hinting at the hills among which she grew up, yet immersed in an innate design sense that holds it all together is almost "to be expected"! These three pieces were created together and will be sold "as one".
Anne O'Connor
Anne is well known on these walls for her sensitive and innovative approach to photography.
This piece is reminiscent of some of the works in her solo show here in 2024 - photographs of water or sand, carefully aligned so that they seem to flow as one, with a super-text of immaculate hand-stitchery (worked directly into the cotton-rag paper) that echoes the sense of the images. "The Denison - Freedom of a River" has these qualities in abundance and draws the viewer right into the textures of each sand panel.
Christine Davson-Galle
Christine Davson-Galle hand-sews garments from textiles which she eco-dyes, using all sorts of leaves, flowers and seeds. Before Christmas last year, Christine set up a "market " of her "Wearable Art" in the Inner Gallery. The garments were made of pure wool or kimono silk; the designs were unique and quite beautiful and the market was a great success ! Early this year, there were queries as to when (some lovely ladies) could hope to see more of Christine's garments in the Gallery... and so we have, by popular demand, a long flowing shawl, in the softest of Georgette Silk:- "Surrounded By Green Hearts", it is called .. which it certainly is ! It was made in a week, especially for this Show...
