I had seen a digital print by this artist for the first time in a mixed show a few months back. That is why, after receiving the invitation to this exhibition I counted the days to its opening. It was well worth the wait as not only was I able revisit the image that so impressed me the first time, I could regard it in concert with the artist's other exhibits which added to my admiration for her ability.

One has to applaud Valerie Sparks' imagination, creative imagery, and command of concentration and skills needed to produce these excellent prints. The artist digitally manipulates photographs by picking out particular elements, such as a single flower or a cluster of leaves, and plays with their size and/or positional aspect. In this way she can repeat motifs many times in different ways. But trying to analyse how the artist creates her work only spoils the magic. It's better to just enjoy the visage.

The print that caught my breath both times I viewed it was El Dorado Springs. This 100 x 600cm pigment inkjet print on paper depicts a wondrous landscape complete with mountains, monuments, temples, an assortment of elegant trees and exotic flowers. Although the title is taken from 19th century wallpaper and the picture includes structures from the modern city of Melbourne, the total image evokes ideas of that legendary city of golden men located somewhere in the Andes of South America. Based on a myth, 'El Dorado' evolved to mean a city of riches, then to a place where all dreams will be met. Sparks' El Dorado suggests a utopian landscape of physical and spiritual harmony. Swamp flowers grow alongside gum trees, temples stand next to cathedrals, and there is an equal sense of peace and harmony in the colours, compositional design and the feeling it evokes. Presented in this gallery and with sufficient time to closely examine this exhibit only doubled my appreciation of the artist's ability.

Sparks' work is inspired by French wallpaper styles that were popular in the 1800's. Besides the scenic, she also pays tribute to flocked wallpaper in the series of three lightjet prints on paper entitled This is not a wallflower. Each image shows beautifully photographed images of different flowers set in front of textured papered panels. She is able to capture the soft texture of petals and how yellow light draws the edge of a green leaf to present stunning studies of blooms, that play host to a couple of half hidden bees!

Don't be fooled, as I was, by the excellent trompe l'oeil effect in the two works With a view to Paradise Gallery 1 & 3. What appears to be the unfurnished interior of a Victorian home, with walls covered from floor to ceilings in murals of tropical landscapes, is just an illusion. Although the building is real, the wall decoration exists only in these photographic images. Equally impressive is the brooding landscape The Event which had me believing I was present at the dawn of time when the first touches of colour were born.

This is an excellent exhibition of splendid work, one not to be missed.