Family connection at heart of exhibition

It is a step back in time for artist Julie Ann McEwen as she unveils her latest solo exhibition at Millicent Art Gallery this Friday.

Titled ‘Nostalgia – The Creative Journey’, the exhibition will feature 100 of her works, showcasing her connection to her ancestors as she taps into the creative process of her parents and both grandmothers.

“I want my work to remind us that creativity can have beneficial results in our lives,” Julie Ann said. “Exploring art media and being involved with art activities can lead to healthier minds and wellbeing.”

For Julie Ann, the words of American artist Sister Corita Kent – “Doing and making are acts of hope and as that hope grows we stop feeling overwhelmed by the troubles of the world.”

This is Julie Ann’s first solo exhibition since COVID and will be opened by Tatiara District Council manager arts and culture and Walkway Gallery director Naomi Fallon – a former student of Julie Ann.

“I will have about 100 of my art works in the show and I am excited by the opportunity to acknowledge my creative family,” she said. “I look forward to sharing how I take their influence further and go in my own direction.

“I think at an early age it was instilled in me the importance of working with my hands. I am forever grateful to have grown up in a family that valued art. Experienced through my early life led me on the creative path I still follow today.”

Some of the art works on display will be on loan from family, friends and collectors and there will also be never-before-seen new piece available for purchase.

Julie Ann believes it is that strong family connection to creativity that sees her continuing to create herself.

“It is all about the connection with family,” she said. “My art displays my inherited creativity, a strong generational influence and a sense of connection to past family members.”

She also believes there is that strong connection between creating art and wellbeing.

“I let the story I want to tell determine the media I use for a particular work,” Julie Ann said. “The creating process starts with the emotions I am feeling. I never have a set plan when making an art work. The materials I choose guide me and my work evolves.

“Ritual and repetition are involved in the mixed media work that I am doing at the moment which slows my process down, adding more meaning to my work and putting more of myself in each piece.

“At this stage of my art journey I find I have a profound need for connection with the materials that I choose to work with, seeking to infuse deeper personal meaning to my work by closer connection to my family, who continue to influence my life of creativity.”