When it comes to landscape paintings, viewers are attracted to the genre for different reasons. Some are drawn to the image by its colour, others appreciate how they capture the atmosphere of nature, and there are those who look for happy memories of the place depicted. Then there are the aficionados of landscape paintings, those who go beyond the picture to see the 'painting' - as in the verb not the noun. I feel certain these works will satisfy all who are looking for colour, atmosphere, and memories as well as those who enjoy examining the [act of] painting, as all these approaches to art are treated with respect and acquitted with expertise by Sam Broadhurst.
This artist knows how to work colour. He is able to retain the character and validity of each hue as he lays one atop another on the surface. Equally exciting is how the natural vibrancy of his medium is allowed to sing. Consider the pair of oil on canvas works Karijini Light – Morning and Karijini Light – Evening, two excellent examples of how the artist uses clarity of colour to ascribe very different moods to the same land form.
Atmosphere and time of day are also well depicted in Afternoon Silence – Near Moses Rock. The long shadows, white sand dunes topped with vegetation, and a horizon that has water laden clouds melting into the sea is so beautifully rendered we can almost feel the cool air on the skin. And in Fremantle Harbour the artist adeptly captures a sense of the sea breeze tempering the heat of the mid-day sunlight. If you have ever been around the corner from Albany or sat on a jetty in Freo you will connect with these works.
As a devotee of painting, the verb, I found more to appreciate then just the images, moods and memories in these exhibits. The most rewarding part of viewing Broadhurst's paintings is seeing the hand of the artist at work, turning brush marks of true colour into clouds, land and water, and giving volume and depth to the flat surface. An excellent example of this ability is seen in Quiet Reflection – Matilda Bay where the organic texture of the foreground tree is suggested by seemingly random mark making while the buildings in the distant cityscape are defined by structured brushstrokes.
These landscapes provide viewers with rich colour and ethereal atmospherics that will evoke happy memories. But the most satisfying aspect of Sam Broadhurst's paintings is his technique. Whatever your reason for liking landscape art attend this exhibition, look into the image then come up close and look at the work, that's when you'll see what 'painting' is all about.