Elevation

Presented by Grace Gladdish

Opening Event :
Friday 11 July 2025 @ 5:30pm – 7:30pm

Opening Hours:
10:00am – 4:00pm daily

Elevation is an exhibition of works on paper by Grace Gladdish, exploring the alpine landscapes of Tasmania.

“Elevation includes my recent printmaking and works on paper, exploring Tasmania’s wild alpine landscapes.  I create complex linocuts and paint them with watercolour, creating hybrids that straddle the disciplines of both painting and printmaking. I love the push and pull between the strong, stark linocut and the subtleties of watercolour. I enjoy the way the oil-based ink and water-based paint both repel each other, and work together to form an image. It seems to be resonant with the landscape I am portraying and it’s a satisfying process that keeps me curious to explore its possibilities. 

Alpine landscapes have captured my attention since moving to live on the foothills of kunanyi/Mt Wellington. The wonder of an alpine environment so accessible to a capital city, like the one at the summit of kunanyi, is one of the things that makes Hobart a special place to live. I am fascinated by the harshness of the place – wild and untamed; an unsafe environment where we would struggle to survive and yet close in proximity to our built environment. I find symbolism within the landscape that speaks to my own life and experience. Visually too, it seems to endlessly fascinate me with its colour, texture and quality of light. Most make a pilgrimage to the top of the mountain for the view of the land stretched out below. It is breathtaking! But I also love the landscape of the summit itself; treeless and patch-worked by the boulders and plants that make their home in that extreme environment. 

I’ve recently begun cutting and tearing up my lino prints which has as subversive feeling that I’ve enjoyed. I’ve found these destructive forces to be invigorating and creative, and a new series of collages has emerged. Cutting along ‘found’ lines in the ripped elements and re-fitting pieces of separate prints to create entirely new imagined landscapes is a process akin to drawing. I love finding ways that the ripped pieces connect, as if the landscape itself is dictating the journey the lines travel. These connections have had me thinking about my own connections with both the landscape and the people around me. The resulting collages can be seen as autobiographical, mapping paths both literal and poetic, re-fitting parts of my life and making my own new connections.”
– Grace Gladdish