$65,000.00
Family Gathering (Gang Gang Cockatoos) Original Acrylic on Baltic Birch 76.3cm x 76.3cm – SOLD
Stephen’s Inspiration: I have always wanted to explore the design of a square painting and to create an illusion of it not being square. Searching through my reference photos I found a superb river gum scene full of light, branches, and complex foliage. Cropping the photo to a square format highlighted the design challenges. The tree and branches had a very dominant shape which only strengthened the square format. So, to break this I warped the tree forming a more diagonal droopy L shape. The angles of the branches were now so dominant they overpowered and obscured the square format. Further strengthening the illusion, I added the Gang Gang’s, left hand bird on the line of thirds, the mother and fledgling on the opposite line of thirds. Finally, the branches, flower buds, leaves and bark enhanced the complexity completing the illusion.
The gang-gang cockatoo, Callocephalon fimbriatum, is found in the cooler and wetter forests and woodlands of Australia, particularly alpine bushland. Mostly mild grey in colour with some lighter scalloping (more pronounced and buffish in females) the male has a red head and crest, while the female has a small fluffy grey crest. It ranges throughout south-eastern Australia. The gang-gang cockatoo is the faunal emblem of the Australian Capital Territory. It is easily identified by its distinctive call, which is described as resembling a creaky gate, or the sound of a cork being pulled from a wine bottle. The name gang-gang comes from a New South Wales Aboriginal language, either Ngunnawal or Wiradjuri. It is possible both language groups called it gang-gang. Unlike most other cockatoos, gang-gangs nest in young, solid trees, the females using their strong beaks to excavate nesting cavities. Also breed in the canopy of most trees. They are sexually dichromatic. Loss of older, hollow trees and loss of feeding habitat across south-eastern Australia through land clearing has led to a significant reduction in the numbers of this cockatoo in recent years. As a result, the gang-gang is now listed as vulnerable in NSW.
Original artwork by ARC Living Master Artist Stephen Jesic.
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