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for more information conatct Anita: anita@anitaklein.com
all works acrylic on paper. anita klein ©2000/2010

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My Residency at Bundanon - Anita Klein PPRE

In December 2006 I was one of four artists in residence at Bundanon, New South Wales,
Australia. Bundanon is the name of the property and also the trust set up by one of
Australia’s most influential and well known twentieth century painters and printmakers:
Arthur Boyd. Boyd was the best known of a four generation family of successful artists
including his son and daughter who now live in London, his father and grandfather.
Arthur Boyd bought Bundanon, a large property comprising farmland, a Victorian
homestead and unspoilt bushland on the banks of the beautiful Shoalhaven river in 1979.
His family house and studio, which is still as it was at the time of his death in 1999, are
open to the public on Sundays, and the nearby Riversdale, Boyd’s previous home on the
Shoalhaven is now home to a magnificent education centre designed by celebrated
Australian architect Glen Murcutt. In 1993 Boyd gifted both properties along with a
substantial collection of his and his family’s work to the Australian nation. This gift was
born out of his belief that “you cannot own a landscape” and he expressly intended
Bundanon to be “a living arts centre”. To this end there is a flourishing artist in residence
scheme which I was lucky enough to be invited to join.

Approaching Bundanon for the first time in my hire car, the trees on either side of the 8km
unsealed road seemed to get more and more beautiful until I reached an oasis of green
pasture in what is otherwise a dry and wild landscape. It is hard to describe Australia to
Europeans who have never visited; the major cities are much like our own, but the landscape
and animals are so different as to seem like they are on another planet. I have a particular
connection to the country: I was born in Sydney and spent my first 11 years living in
Melbourne, so I have a child’s relationship to the land, one of smells and colours and
sounds. I was therefore intrigued and excited to have to opportunity to re-live some
non-verbal memories, as well as, of course, to have time to work without the
interruptions and distractions of home.

The Artist in Residence Complex consists of four buildings within sight of the original
family home. There are two buildings each with two apartments that share a kitchen.
Two of the four apartments have studio space attached, and two have adjoining
studios in a converted barn. The fourth building houses the permanent collection
of paintings, prints, drawings and sculpture by Arthur Boyd, his family and friends,
and donated pieces by previous artists in residence. There is also a separate cottage
with a grand piano which is offered to writers and or musicians in residence.
I was given one of the studios in the converted barn, a huge space with beautiful
light and an etching press and sink in the corner.

For the first few days it was difficult to know where to begin. There are no requirements
of artists in residence. It is a completely generous gift of time and space which takes
some getting used to. Of course meeting the other artists was a great privilege.
During my time there I met a painter from Brisbane, a sculptor from London,
an installation artist from Dusseldorf, a painter from Rio de Janeiro, and a writer
and a composer, both from Melbourne. It was fascinating to witness other
people’s working processes, and nice to have company for walks, evening
meals and afternoon swims in the river.

I began by exploring the property on foot. There is a forested high ridge including
sandstone caves which became my favourite place and I began each day with an
hour or two’s walk, smelling the eucalyptus and listening to the birds. The Shoalhaven
river is about 20 minutes walk from the studios and was a constantly changing and
stunningly beautiful spectacle, as well as a welcome place for a cool dip when
temperatures soared in the New South Wales summer. The resident wildlife was
a huge entertainment: at around 5pm the fields were dotted with grazing wombats,
strange burrowing marsupials like very large guinea pigs. In the early morning and
evening packs of kangaroos would come hopping out of the forest to graze, and
highly coloured squawking birds were everywhere. Spiders the size of my hand,
and deadly snakes were also there, if rarely spotted, to remind us that we were
not in safe Europe anymore.

My overriding feeling for the month was one of exuberance and gratitude for such
an amazing experience. Once I started painting it was hard to stop, and a month
of free playing produced 20 paintings and 4 prints which along with my photographs
prove, in grey old London, that it was not all a wonderful dream.

Anita Klein uses Michael Harding Artists Oil Colours www.michealharding.co.uk
Manufacturer of the highest quality artists oil paint. A supportive resource for artists.
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