River Valley Firetrail Painting

Oil on canvas, 45 x 45 cm Please note – this painting is shipped unframed. I have included some framing suggestions for you in the description to give an idea of what it may look like in your home. ‘For Australians, climate change is no longer a distant threat. Our rivers are dying, bush fires are more ferocious and more frequent and our natural wonders – the Great Barrier Reef, Kakadu, our rainforests – are now at risk.’ Kevin Rudd There is some pretty rough and steep country leading down to the Wollondilly river, accessible only by 4 wheel drive vehicles. This is a view of the firetrail from the banks of the river looking back up the hills. A firetrail is a rural road built specifically for access to the bush for fire management and containment. The natural flow of the land is interrupted a bit by the man-made clearings and structures that have been added over the years, which do provide an interesting visual focus for the painting. Bushfires are not uncommon in the land of Oz, and more so now with climate change and global warming now with us. Whilst they are a natural part of the environment here – some trees and bushes will simply not regenerate unless a fire has been through, they nevertheless need to be contained to protect life and property, and they are without any doubt getting more severe and common here, along with the floods of course, which have an unfortunate habit of coming only when they are not needed. This one was commenced in situ, and then a session or two in my studio, and then finished while I was out camping at Mystery Bay last week. It’s amazing how much a difference working en plein air or in situ can make to a painting, even if there is a high level of abstraction involved. It’s to do with the quality of the light and the commitment to being there which allows for more of a recording of the human experience of the exercise rather than just a picture.