From studio to wall: 13 artworks with stories to tell

Classically trained at the prestigious Florence Academy of Art in Italy, Alice Laura Palmer brings centuries-old painting traditions into contemporary practice. Working primarily from life, Alice carefully studies her subjects over time, observing subtle changes in light, colour and form before translating them to canvas.

Her still lifes reward close looking. Everyday objects such as fruit, flowers and ceramics are transformed through her meticulous approach to painting, revealing details and nuances that are often overlooked in daily life. The soft play of light across a surface, the texture of a petal or the curve of a piece of fruit all become subjects worthy of attention.

This careful process requires huge levels of patience and observation, combined with years of training. While the subjects themselves may be familiar, Alice’s ability to capture them with such sensitivity and realism encourages viewers to slow down and see beauty in the ordinary. The result is works that feel both timeless and deeply personal.

With a painting career spanning more than five decades, David Moore is one of Victoria’s most respected tonal realist painters. His work is held in significant public collections including Castlemaine Art Museum and Geelong Gallery, and he has received notable accolades including the Alice M. E. Bale Scholarship and the Norman Kay Award from the Victorian Artists Society.

David’s paintings are deceptively simple. Behind every canvas lies decades of experience studying light, atmosphere, and colour. In the Studio continues an unexpected subject that David has revisited throughout his career: ballet costumes. Inspired by seeing paintings of dancer Anna Pavlova, David became fascinated by the challenge of depicting delicate fabrics and the way light moves through layers of tulle. Rather than viewing the costume as clothing, he approaches it as a still life object, studying its shape, structure, and subtle transparency in very much the same way he would a vase or vessel.

On the surface, Joe Blundell’s paintings may depict familiar streets, buildings, and urban scenes, but a closer look reveals the level of observation and technical precision behind each work.

Capturing architecture convincingly requires an understanding of perspective, structure and composition, while also balancing the more elusive qualities of light, shadow and atmosphere. Joe brings these elements together to create paintings that feel both realistic and deeply atmospheric.

By focusing on subtle moments of light and the quiet character of Melbourne’s streetscapes, he encourages viewers to see familiar places with fresh eyes.

His distinctive approach has earned recognition in some of Australia’s most respected landscape prizes, including being a finalist and award winner in both the Hadley’s Art Prize and the Paddington Art Prize. His work has also been selected for exhibition with the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in London.

For more than 20 years Karen Davis and Pepa Martin have worked together, creating striking textile artworks that blur the line between craft, design and fine art.

What began as a shared fascination with colour, pattern, and traditional Japanese dyeing techniques has evolved into an internationally recognised collaborative practice, with works collected by private collectors and commissioned for architectural and interior projects around the world.

Their work is inspired by the ancient Japanese art of shibori, a resist-dyeing technique where fabric is folded, twisted, bound or stitched before being dyed to create intricate patterns and organic effects.

In their contemporary artworks, Karen and Pepa push these traditional techniques far beyond their original form. Hand-dyed silk is shaped, layered and manipulated into sculptural works inspired by landscape, topography and the natural world, transforming soft textiles into artworks with remarkable depth and movement.

Peta West’s breathtaking linocut prints are a masterclass in patience and precision. Before becoming a printmaker, Peta spent more than two decades as a photographer, developing the keen eye for composition, balance and detail that now defines her work. Her practice has earned significant recognition in recent years, with works selected for prestigious prizes including the Ravenswood Australian Women’s Art Prize, The Alice Prize, the Waverley Art Prize and the National Contemporary Art Prize. Halcyon Song has been particularly celebrated, receiving major acclaim and cementing Peta’s reputation as one of Australia’s most exciting contemporary printmakers.

What makes Peta’s work particularly remarkable is the printmaking process itself. Unlike painting, where an artist builds an image by adding marks to a surface, linocut requires the artist to work in reverse. Peta begins by carving away areas she wants to remain white or unprinted. The final image is created from the surface left behind, meaning every mark must be planned and cannot be easily corrected once carved.

Her intricate works can take up to 280 hours to complete, with countless hours spent carving fine lines, textures and details into the lino before ink is rolled across the surface and pressed onto paper.

The result is a richly detailed world of native flora and fauna that rewards close looking. Peta’s works aren’t simply prints – they are the culmination of hundreds of hours of craftsmanship, technical expertise, and artistic vision.

At first glance, Mah Chen’s vibrant works are striking for their colour and intricate patterns, but it’s only when viewed up close that the complexity of the process becomes apparent. Working primarily with carved wood, Mah Chen builds richly layered compositions filled with geometric forms, symbols and expressive marks that invite ongoing discovery.

Originally from South Korea, Mah Chen creates works that sit at the intersection of painting and sculpture. Rather than applying imagery to a flat surface alone, Mah Chen carves, layers, and builds each piece, creating a tactile quality that adds depth, texture and movement.

New shapes, colours and details continue to emerge the longer a viewer spends with them, creating an experience that evolves over time.

For more than two decades, Jane Canfield has been painting the Australian landscape, capturing the fleeting colours, shifting light and quiet moments that often pass unnoticed.

What makes Jane’s work particularly engaging is her process. Rather than working solely from photographs, she begins with quick studies and drawings made on location, gathering information about colour, light and mood before returning to the studio. These observations then become the foundation for her works.

Her paintings aren’t about documenting a place with photographic accuracy. Instead, they capture a feeling of being there: sunlight filtering through the trees, the soft haze of distance, or the memory of a landscape that lingers.

Jane is represented by Manyung Gallery, one of Australia’s most established contemporary galleries. With five locations across Victoria, Manyung Gallery represents an exceptional breadth of local artists creating diverse contemporary art.

Few artists can claim the depth of experience that Gregory R. Smith brings to his practice. A Fellow, former President and Honorary Life Member of the Victorian Artists Society, Gregory has held more than 40 solo exhibitions and received over 200 art awards throughout his career.

Known for his tonal realist approach, Gregory paints directly from life, whether working on a still life in the studio or out in the landscape. His paintings reveal the discipline and visual understanding developed through more than three decades of artistic practice and teaching.

Rachel Rush’s artworks are impossible to walk past without stopping. Bursting with colour, characters and layers of visual detail, each piece feels alive with energy.

A self-taught artist from New Zealand, Rachel has developed a distinctive style that blends street art influences with contemporary mixed-media techniques, earning a growing following of collectors both locally and internationally.

Her process begins with a loose concept and an abstract painted background, where colour takes centre stage. From there, layers of paint, resin, collage, stencils and graffiti-inspired mark marking are gradually added and reworked, creating a composition that evolves over many stages. The result is an artwork with incredible depth, where details emerge and recede the closer you look.

Part of what makes her artworks so compelling is the balance between spontaneity and control, giving the effect of a moment captured in time.

Represented by Vandal, a respected contemporary gallery in New Zealand known for showcasing ambitious and highly collectable artists, Rachel’s work sits within a roster of contemporary talent.

Anna Carien-Goosen’s paintings invite viewers into worlds that feel both familiar and dreamlike. Blending figures, native flora and fauna, and subtle narrative elements, her works often sit somewhere between memory and imagination, encouraging viewers to bring their own interpretations to the piece.

Anna’s process often begins with sketches, ideas and everyday moments, which are then layered into richly textured paintings where meaning gradually unfolds over time. Light and gesture play an important role in her practice, and she wonderfully balances technical skill with storytelling.

Originally from South Africa and now based in Sydney, Anna has built an accomplished career spanning solo and group exhibitions in Australia and internationally. Her work has been recognised through several significant accolades, including winning the Naracoorte National Art Prize, the South African Portrait Society’s Living Portrait Master Award, and being selected as a semi-finalist in the inaugural Australian Portrait Artist of the Year in 2025.