'Memory Birds and Cuckoo Trees' by Judy Watson

Next date: Friday, 06 November 2026 | 12:00 AM to Saturday, 09 January 2027 | 11:59 PM

In this exhibition of lush collages, mixed-media artist and book illustrator, Judy Watson, illuminates strange landscapes and invites us to tease out the untold stories within.

Rampant jungles, dreamscapes and intergalactic frontiers are filled with overblown plants and creatures grown from a cornucopia of imagined genetic material. Small figures pursue their destinations or meet lovers, often seeming absurdly vulnerable to the appetites of their surroundings.

“Working in a contemplative way with watered down acrylic ink, I paint real plants and their imaginary cousins, real animals and their parallel universe counterparts, giving my imagination free rein. The images are then scanned at a high resolution and I begin to assemble the compositions in Photoshop, allowing the scenes to grow organically. I never use AI.

I apply layers of colour to the ink originals and intertwine and overlap plants until the space has evolved into its own complicated identity and sense of place. Then I populate it, sometimes with people, sometimes with creatures. The interplay of texture and colour creates a mood that the viewer can journey into, taking their imagination for a walk.

Years of experience as a book illustrator has taught me how to tell a story, not by repeating what the text has already said, but by taking the viewer beyond the limits of the words to new places, or to echoes of places from the past.”

In this exhibition, the artist speaks first and it’s the images that begin the stories. You as the viewer are invited to step into unknown worlds with fresh eyes and become the author of unwritten narratives.

The title of the exhibition refers to the books of Joan Aiken, specifically the series known as the Wolves Chronicles. In these books, Aiken took the real history of England and bent it. To this she added grotesque villains, dastardly plots and wild adventures across landscapes and seascapes, all populated with a bevy of beasts both real and imagined. This leap from something resembling reality into something more like ‘bioabsurdity’ is what the artist hopes to achieve.

By inviting viewers to step into strange worlds and spin their own yarn, this exhibition unapologetically embodies literal escapism, but by trusting in the viewer’s innate human ability to create meaning and story, it also messages defiance against the thundering onrush of AI.

Image credit: Judy Watson, Rendezvous, 2020 digital collage combining hand-painted and drawn elements.

When

Location

Outdoor Lightbox Gallery

Kingston Arts Centre, 979 Nepean Highway, Moorabbin, 3189, View Map

Consider walking, cycling or using public transport options, leaving your car at home.

Accessibility

We are committed to providing accessible venues and events for everyone. Learn more about accessibility at Kingston Arts Centre.