Talking With Painters

John Wolseley is one of Australia’s most important artists.  He portrays the Australian landscape and its ecosystems from the roots of a tree to a whole floodplain; from trees, birds and fish to a tiny beetle. Using a variety of techniques, he says he creates a kind of inventory or document of the state of the earth, revealing both the energy and beauty of it. To do that he physically immerses himself in nature, spending long periods at a time camping and observing the country from Tasmania to central Australia to Arnhem land. Wolseley has had over 25 solo shows and the exhibition Midawarr | Harvest is currently travelling around the country. It is a collection of his works and those of aboriginal elder Mulkun Wirrpanda with whom he has developed a special bond over many years. His work is held in most important Australian art institutions and of course many private collections. But probably the most interesting part of our conversation is where he talks about literally collaborating with nature to produce