Thursday, November 12, 2015

Return to Hanging Rock



Curator, Cara-Ann Simpson, is creating an exhibition to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the film Picnic at Hanging Rock. It was directed by Peter Weir and based on the book by Joan Lindsay of the same title. One of the finest Australian films made during the 70s, it was based on the mysterious disappearance of a group of school girls and their teacher from Appleyard College onValentines Day in 1900 on an excursion to Hanging Rock. The novel was published in 1967.

For more detailed references about the film and the book, click HERE

The exhibition is called Return to Hanging Rock and it will be open to the public at Mulberry Hill, a National Trust property and former residence of Joan Lindsay and her husband Darryl, and how appropriate is that!

More details about the exhibition and the dates can be seen HERE

One of my paintings will be in the exhibition titled Fact or Fiction? It's a trompe l'oeil work of the DVD, Picnic at Hanging Rock. The title refers to a genre where an illusionistic painting is mistaken for reality. But there is also a debate about whether the story is true or not, and Joan Lindsay would never say.

There is no historical evidence that the incident happened, but a great film has been made about it nevertheless.

Here is my painting, and it features Anne-Louise Lambert playing Miranda. The above photo is a still from the film with Anne-Loise Lambert



 Fact or Fiction?, 2010, oil on MDF, 19 x 13.5 cm