THE Art Gallery of Ballarat\u2019s latest Backspace exhibition is highlighting the streetscapes of Victoria\u2019s largest regional cities.<\/p>\n
Covering Ballarat and Geelong, the exhibit is titled Christian den Besten: An Outsider\u2019s View, and the show features the works of the eponymous Geelong-based artist.<\/p>\n
Den Besten said the historic architecture provided \u201csomething different\u201d for him compared to the buildings in Geelong.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s is a member of ArtGusto, an arts studio for people with disabilities, whose director Sharon Bromley said the works were inspired from trips to Ballarat between 2017 to 2019, and again this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs an artist, Christian documents buildings. He\u2019s been documenting his town of Geelong but we started coming to Ballarat for art excursions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted to take photos of the buildings and draw them as a way of preserving them, especially the older ones because one day they might not be there.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wants to capture them before they get replaced. He\u2019s very excited to be displaying here in Ballarat.\u201d<\/p>\n
The exhibition features 19 pencil and polymer works depicting Geelong buildings and Ballarat sites like Regent Cinemas, the Old Colonists Hall and the Mining Exchange.<\/p>\n
Three miniature vehicles made of balsa wood also feature in the show.<\/p>\n
Den Besten said each pencilled work would take about two weeks to create from the ArtGusto studio using photos of the buildings taken during the art excursions as reference.<\/p>\n
The artist has previously displayed works in Ballarat as part of group exhibitions at the Post Office Gallery in 2011 and the Mining Exchange in 2017.<\/p>\n
The Backspace program is aimed at showcasing emerging artists.<\/p>\n
Christian den Besten: An Outsider\u2019s View is open until Sunday, 15 January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
THE Art Gallery of Ballarat\u2019s latest Backspace exhibition is highlighting the streetscapes of Victoria\u2019s largest regional cities. Covering Ballarat and Geelong, the exhibit is titled Christian den Besten: An Outsider\u2019s View, and the show features the works of the eponymous Geelong-based artist. Den Besten said the historic architecture provided \u201csomething different\u201d for him compared to […]<\/p>\n