An exciting addition to the local art scene opened on Friday for a short duration with an exhibition called ‘Just the Two of Us’ at the Tegel Gallery 581 in Cobbitty, NSW. Word had gotten around, and an enthusiastic crowd gathered at the opening.
Around 100 eager art fans graced the gallery’s doors, and Nola welcomed them with a broad smile and warm hello. Local art lovers and just friends of Nola and Patricia were not disappointed.
Nola Tegel and Patricia Johnston’s double-hander, ‘Just the Two of Us,’ opened Friday afternoon at the Tegel Gallery 581 at 581 Cobbitty Road, Cobbitty. The exhibition notes say that ‘Just The Two of Us’ is
a dazzling exhibition of 100 paintings by lifelong friends Nola Tegel and Patricia Johnston. Their work in oil and watercolour, reflect their love of the inspiring Camden countryside, and their wide travels and interests. (Exhibition Notes)
Firm friends Tegel and Johnston are no newcomers to the Camden art scene. Both are award-winning artists and were part of the Camden Art Group in the 1970s, led by award-winning artist Alan Baker.
Both trained at the Royal Art Society with Harry Hanke to gain their Diploma in Art. Both have had numerous exhibitions and have travelled extensively overseas to locations in Europe and Asia.
Both became Fellows of the Royal Art Society of NSW, and ‘so we are now Nola Tegel FRAS and Patricia Johnston FRAS,’’ said Nola (Kontos)
‘We have enjoyed many travel adventures together over the years’, said Nola. (Nola and Patricia)
Both found Alan Baker’s art group life-changing and propelled their careers, particularly within the en plain air tradition, painting picturesque local landscapes.
‘This is our favourite style of painting’, said Nola. (Nola and Patricia)
Baker created what might be called the Camden Realist School of Art. He followed the Realist tradition and shunned sentimentalism, modernist abstract, and avant-garde styles. Tegel and Johnston have exhibited this style of work in other exhibitions.
Tegel and Johnston’s artworks represent Camden Realism and are a form of storytelling. Their representational style documents the ever-changing landscape of the Macarthur region and its cultural heritage.
Patricia says, ‘Our individual development as artists drives the other to be better’. (Nola and Patricia)
Both artists have exhibited many times together, starting at the Artisan Gallery in Mittagong in 1973. (Kontos)
Their works illustrate art’s ability to tell a story and encourage viewers to linger over the subject matter. The artists understand the nature of place and how it captures people’s imagination.
People’s emotions are embedded in the landscape, the village, or other subjects, and these emotions are brought out in the paintings.
The artworks in ‘Just The Two of Us’ hint at what has been described as a ‘glimpse of grandeur here in Italy, France’ (Exhibition Notes, 2019, MRAG).
The exhibition works range from scenes of the Camden district to European landscapes and villages to still life in oils and watercolours.
The works’ aesthetic quality displays an artistic narrative form with elements of visual language that express empathy for the subject matter. Like a snapshot in time, an artwork of a locality captures the moment, primarily through the en plein tradition, where the artist works in the location and experiences the smells, the weather, and other elements. Tegel and Johnston have done this throughout their careers.
The exhibition is a sample of the vibrant, impressive body of work both artists have put together throughout their careers.
Nola said, ‘The exhibition is a celebration of friendship and a lifelong love of art’. (Nola and Patricia)
Anyone who has followed the careers of these talented local artists should visit the exhibition. It is a rare opportunity to see the work of both artists in one location, with a variety of paintings in oil and watercolour.
‘Just The Two of Us’ continues at the Tegel Gallery 581, 581 Cobbitty Road, Cobbitty, 10.30-4pm daily until Sunday, 27 October 2024. Closed Monday and Tuesday, 21-22 October 2024.
References
‘Nola and Patricia, A Lifetime of Art Together’, In Macarthur Magazine, Spring, No 2, 2024, pp. 46-48.
Eric Kontos, ‘Nola Tegel and Patricia Johnston are “just the two of us”‘. South West Voice, 17 October 2024.
Updated 21 October 2024. Originally posted on 20 October 2024.
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