Sutherland landscape painter Kevin McKay has a new exhibition at Moran Gallery, Sylvania which will resonate with many Shire residents.
Called There and Back Again, Paintings from The Shire and Beyond, the exhibition explores the feeling of home that comes from returning from the daily commute, a weekend excursion or annual holiday.
Local landmarks as well as some from further afield feature in many of Kevin McKay’s works.
“I try to bring the eyes of a tourist to the familiar and to find a connection with places that are new to me or that I encounter in the periphery” he said.
Kevin’s carefully composed and modest scaled urban landscapes are executed “en plein air” and in the studio.
While typically devoid of traffic and pedestrians, incidental details like signage or wheelie bins often feature.
“I’m interested in the beauty that can be found in the everyday, and hope that the viewer will fill these empty spaces with their own memories and meanings,” he said.
Kevin McKay is an urban landscape painter who holds a Masters Degree in Fine Art from the National Art School and exhibits at May Space Gallery, Sydney.
His many awards include the Basil and Muriel Hooper Scholarship from the AGNSW, 2006; the Sydney City of Villages Art Prize, 2009; the inaugural William Fletcher Foundation Scholarship to The British School at Rome, 2011; the Kogarah Emerging Artist Prize, 2012; the Waverley Oil Painting Prize, 2013; the Allan Gamble Memorial Prize, 2015; the People’s Choice Award, Waverley Art Prize 2016, and the People’s Choice Award, Greenway Art Prize 2017.
He is on the board of Directors with the William Fletcher Foundation and has taught at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney Grammar School, Hazelhurst Arts Centre, Waverley Woollahra Art School and the National Art School.
Exhibition details:
Moran Gallery: 29 Sylvania Road, Sylvania NSW 2224. Tel: 02 9532 6222
Exhibition: Until Sunday, December 2.
Opening Hours: Daily, 10am – 4pm, free entry.
