November 10, 2016
A large crowd packed the Wondai Regional Art Gallery last Friday night to view an eclectic exhibition of old and new works by a well-known but rarely seen South Burnett artist.
Dianne Woodall’s last solo exhibition at the gallery in 2013 featured portraits of dogs and cats that had been prepared to illustrate a children’s book, and it drew a bumper crowd.
There was just as much enthusiasm for her latest exhibition, where the themes varied from flowers through to portraits and landscapes, with just a smattering of pets.
The main gallery is filled with 21 of her works, mostly executed in acrylics or oils.
They cover almost two decades of painting from the late 1990s through to the present day.
Meanwhile, the front gallery features examples of works Dianne has undertaken at art workshops over many years under a variety of different tutors using many other media, along with her workshop notebooks.
It also features a partly completed oil portrait Dianne has begun working on to give visitors an idea of just how painstaking and time-consuming creating a finished work of art can be.
Dianne has lived in the South Burnett all her life but only took up painting in 1999.
She happily admits that many of her works have taken months to finish; some particularly difficult ones have taken as long as several years.
For her latest exhibition, she is joined by her grandchildren Cody, 10, and Chloe, 6, who have a mini exhibition of their own in Kidz Korner.
Past and present residents of Castra – where Dianne runs art classes twice a month – have an exhibition of their works in the Rear Gallery.
The official opening was performed by Deputy Mayor Kathy Duff, a long-time admirer of Dianne’s work.
It was also addressed by Jan Irvine, a Diversional Therapist at Castra, who explained the very positive effects that art classes had on many residents, especially those with limited mobility or dementia.
Compere Gil Smith, who has helped out with opening nights for the last few months in the absence of curator Elaine Madill, told the crowd Elaine was expected to be returning from hospital in a few days, and he was very hopeful she would soon be back on deck and opening December’s exhibition.
“We all love her and miss her,” Gil told the audience to a round of applause.
“We’ll be very glad to see her back.”
- Dianne Woodall’s “Art For My Sake” and works by Castra Retirement Home residents will remain on display at the Wondai Regional Art Gallery from 10:00am to 4:00pm daily until the end of November. Admission to view the exhibitions is free.
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