General News
25 July, 2025
Art Talks a gallery success
Central Goldfields Art Gallery (CGAG) hosted their second event in their Art Talk series on Wednesday morning, showcasing the influence of Australian geology on well-known landscape paintings.
Presented by Maryborough U3A tutor Alex Stoneman, the session focused on Australian artwork dating back to the early 1800s, with a focus on works by John Glover, Eugene Von Guerard, William Tibbits, Arthur Streeton, Russel Drysdale, and Fred Williams.
The talk also raised questions about hidden ideologies in many of the works.
Mr Stoneman said the topic has always been a passion of his.
“My interest in art is longstanding as part of my deep commitment to Australian culture. I admire artists for their creativity and insight as well as painterly skills such as composition and technical ability,” he said.
He believes these art practices. are still valuable in modern society.
“I also feel that artists and crafts people are undervalued in the broader community, and that CGAG should have an acquisition budget. We have an art gallery we are proud of and generations of locals have worked very hard to get us where we are today,” Mr Stoneman said.
“Two worthwhile initiatives would be to produce a catalogue of all publicly-held artworks in our shire and to digitise them. These would be useful resources.”
This year’s Art Talks are a lecture series hosted by a partnership between CGAG and Maryborough U3A.
This event follow’s the gallery’s previous lecture Ghosts of the Goldfields by Federation University senior lecturer Dr David Waldron.
Other talks in this year’s series will include panel speakers Amanda Jean and Helen Kaptein on the 2025 Golden Textures Contemporary Art Award and the textile history of the goldfields region on August 20.
To follow, a lecture on Women of the Goldfields by La Trobe University adjunct research fellow Dr Katrina Place Dernelley on November 12.
The Art Talks are held on a Wednesday from 10.30 am to 12 pm at the Central Goldfields Art Gallery.