Band of Gold
since you've been gone

This painting examines the long life of the New Farm Cliffs in Brisbane. Wind moving across the cliffs, time passing over houses, bridges and lives — leaving only the cliffs and the river. Gold leaf gives the sandstone emotional solidity and visual translucency, and the interplay of light shifts as glazes are built over it.

The area's developments reflect it being a band of gold. The wharves and Story Bridge were built in the early 1930s as Depression-era relief work. In the 2010s Indigenous people and those without shelter lived in caves in the cliff face. Now the same land hosts upmarket bars and restaurants.

Part of the Mountains of Gold series, which asks where the gold in nature actually lies — whether in its intrinsic beauty or in the profits drawn from it. This stretch of river continues to be a source of gold in every sense, relaxing the hearts of everyone who walks, crosses, and dreams along it.

This work was auctioned in support of Women's Legal Service Queensland at a Logies Charity Event, 3 August 2020.