Heath Mitchell with his chosen work Bush Medicine Leaves, Gloria Petyarre 2013. Photo: Stephen Winkler
With the Benalla Art Gallery celebrating its half-century, while being closed for a redevelopment, the Ensign has been sharing the gallery foundation’s ‘Our Gallery’ project with the community.
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The project involves local people choosing their favourite art work from the gallery collection and explaining what it means to them.
Heath Mitchell
Chosen art work: Bush Medicine Leaves by Gloria Petyarre, 2013.
Heath is an engineer who has lived and raised his family in Benalla since 2001.
He walks through the gallery whenever he visits the café.
Heath believes that the Benalla Art Gallery is important for our communal and civic life.
“Art taps into what makes us all human and ties us together,” he said.
“This painting is visually striking and the closer you get, the more intricate it becomes.
“I like the idea of seeing the beauty and depth in seemingly simple natural things.”
Gloria Petyarre (1945–2021) was a renowned Australian Aboriginal artist from the Anmatyerre community in the Northern Territory.
She was best known for her dynamic Bush Medicine Leaves paintings, which depict the movement and energy of leaves used in traditional healing practices.
Petyarre’s work has gained international acclaim.
Bush Medicine Leaves was donated to Benalla Art Gallery through the Australian Government’s cultural gifts program by Anthony Hall in 2023.
Aria Winkler
Aria Winkler with her chosen work, Water 1 by Atong Atem, 2021. Photo: Stephen Winkler.
Chosen art work: Water 1 by Atong Atem, 2021.
Aria is a secondary school student studying art.
She visits Benalla Art Gallery often and thinks it adds an excellent visual identity to the town.
With the gallery’s incredible architecture and beautiful location, Aria believes it provides the community and visitors with a calming and quiet environment.
“The photo is very serene and calming, with rippling water and unspecific reflections showing the movement of the picture without taking away from the figure, which appears contemplative and grounded,” Aria said.
Atong Atem is a South Sudanese-born, Melbourne-based artist known for her vibrant photography and video works exploring themes of identity, migration and the African diaspora.
Drawing on her personal experience as a refugee, she uses bold colour, pattern and portraiture to reclaim and celebrate black identity.
Atem’s work has been exhibited widely across Australia and internationally, earning recognition for its powerful storytelling and visual richness.
Water 1 was acquired by Benalla Art Gallery with the assistance of The Robert Salzer Foundation and the Benalla Art Gallery Acquisition Trust in 2022.
Kate Holmes
Kate with her chosen work, The Arc - aftermath of bushfires in the North East, Rick Amor, 2003.
Chosen art work: The Arc - aftermath of bushfires in the North East by Rick Amor, 2003.
Kate, a yoga teacher and keen environmentalist, lives at Lima East.
She is involved in the Benalla Sustainable Future group and is president of the Benalla Homelessness Response Group.
Kate believes Benalla Art Gallery provides a beautiful place for social and cultural connection.
She often visits and brings her grandchild to activities.
“This work speaks to me of the seeds of potential stripped back to their bare bones,” Kate said.
“Calamities occur in our world, which can reduce us to our foundations, but can also bring the joy of new growth, healing and the repair of human connection and the environment.”
Born in Frankston in 1948, Rick Amor is a renowned Australian painter and sculptor celebrated for his moody, evocative landscapes and urban scenes that often explore themes of isolation and the passage of time.
Amor’s work is characterised by its cinematic atmosphere and psychological depth.
His art is represented in major Australian collections, including the National Gallery of Australia and the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
The Arc - aftermath of bushfires in the North East was a commissioned gift of the Ledger Trust and Friends of the Benalla Art Gallery in 2003.
