Both works are a kind of crazy fragmented visual poetry, dense with collaged images and broken text. The silhouette of a Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo is at the centre of one and two Magpies the other. I think of Cockatoos as being the jesters of the bird world with their screeching and aerial acrobatics and to me Magpies always look like they’re searching for clues to solve some unknown crime.

1. ‘Jester Bird’ 45 × 55cm $375

2. ‘Lyneham Certified Detectives’ 44 × 55cm $375

www.adamblackshaw.com

https://www.instagram.com/adam_s_blackshaw/

With the recent and unexpected passing of my beautiful Dad in May this year and of my dearest Grandfather 12 months prior, grief has become my constant and unsolicited companion. Momento Vivere or remember to live, finds solace in natures embrace, and reminds one that life is wonderful if indeed too short.

During times of hardship, when everyday feels like a test, and the sun vanishes behind a wall of impenetrable grey, life then imparts resilience so that with the morrow, the sun may again shine brightly.

See each obstacle as a worthy trial. Happiness is naught without tribulation.

We are fortified by our experiences, the good and the bad, and with them, are better able to appreciate what we have. Life is a worthy pursuit, and I am willing traveller.‘

Momento Vivere’, synthetic polymer paint and ink on paper, 61 x 91cm,  $6,600

See more of Adriana’s works at Day Gallery

Angus Comyns is a Canberra based screen print artist with a style that is a fusion of contemporary, urban and pop.

His artistry seamlessly blends vibrant hues with a mix of hand-sketched and photographic visuals, often punctuated with poignant text.

‘BE FEARLESS’, acrylic screen print, 90 x 90cm, $1,500 

‘HOW TO STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD’, acrylic screen print, 80 x 114cm, $1,500

www.anguscomyns.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/anguscomyns/

I wanted to draw emus because they’re quirky, full of personality, and surprisingly expressive for such large birds.

Their unique, fluffy plumage and tall, awkward stances make them fascinating subjects to sketch. Emus also seem a bit misunderstood, they look intimidating, yet have a surprisingly gentle, curious nature.

I wanted to capture that contrast. Plus, their quirky movements and hilarious behaviour in the wild always put a smile on my face, so drawing them felt like a fun way to bring a bit of humour and charm into my art.

Emus just felt like the perfect muse!

‘Emu’, graphite on paper (framed), 23 x 32cm, $550

I am a contemporary mixed-media artist inspired by nature.

I adore painting birds, and I have a particular fondness for our Aussie avians. I especially enjoy getting up close and personal to create bird portraits. I paint with happy exploration, using unexpected colours and expressive mark making, incorporating a mix of acrylics, watercolour, and charcoal. While my work is abstract,

I enjoy lavishing attention on the finer, realistic details. And so, the multi-layered work takes our feathered friends into a world where we can experience intimate and unique encounters with these otherwise wild and fleeting creatures.

 Anna Davi was born in The South West Slopes of NSW and now works and resides in Sydney’s Northern Beaches where she maintains a solid art practice in her modest home studio.

Anna studied art with Art2Life in both 2023 and 2024 and continues with self-initiated training. Anna’s paintings have been featured in group shows, and in exhibitions as a finalist in art prizes in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Key shows include Gallery Alchemy’s “The Palette Project”, The Corner Store Gallery Orange “Inside This Box”, Tiliqua Tiliqua “Yellow,” Brunswick Street Gallery “50 Squared”, Rotary and Lifeline Art Shows, The Burwood Art Prize, Bird Week Australia and several groups shows with Northern Beaches Gallery.

Anna is featured in the June 2024 edition of Art & Style Magazine and has been interviewed by artist and founder of Art2Life Nicholas Wilton.

www.anna-davi-art.com

https://www.instagram.com/annas_artisticjourney/

‘For the love of Magpies’, acrylic on paper (framed), 33 x 33cm, $490

‘Just Before’, acrylic on paper (framed), 33 x 33cm, $490

Born in Australia in 1962, Anna Kovacs (AnnaK) reflects on the unexpected twists of life that led her to embrace a newfound passion for art at the age of 60. In 2023, AnnaK made the bold decision to pursue art as a full-time career, embracing her identity as a self-taught artist and with complete disregard to societal expectations and limitations of what it is to be considered a ‘woman of a certain age’.

Inspired by the breathtaking natural environment, particularly of her native Australia, and fuelled by her own personal spiritual quest, AnnaK's artwork embodies a vibrant fusion of these influences and elements, underscored by a profound love for colour and intricate detail. 

AnnaK's artistic journey has taken her beyond national borders, with her works gracing exhibitions in galleries across The United Kingdom, Europe and the United States.

She has been the recipient of multiple awards and acknowledgements, is a commissioned artist, her works residing internationally. Additionally, AnnaK has a curated portfolio for the Australian Society of Authors further cementing her presence in the global art scene. Her studio is located in Canberra.

‘The Queens – the Divine Feminine’, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 50cm, $12,000

‘The Sweetest Things - Gang-gang Cockatoos’, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 50cm, $9,000 

‘Serenity’, acrylic on canvas, 70 x 55cm, $12,000

https://www.fineartbyannak.com.au/

https://www.instagram.com/fineartbyannak/

Rooted in a deep connection to the natural world, my intimate watercolour paintings are a reflection of this bond. My journey, beginning in Oakland, Maryland, has spanned continents, from the wild terrains of Alaska and the ancient landscapes of Nepal to the gentle undulations of Scotland.

Now settled in Canberra, Australia, my current surroundings infuse my work, capturing moments of quiet, observed wonder.

Executed in miniature using jewel-like tones, my watercolours invite the viewer into a close, private encounter. The scale is deliberate, fostering an intimate moment, like sharing a secret story. This approach is deeply influenced by the Golden Age of Illustration, particularly the work of Aubrey Beardsley, Beatrix Potter, and Arthur Rackham. I admire their mastery in merging the natural world with human experience, forging a powerful emotional connection.

My work, steeped in a passion for nature and storytelling, serves as an invitation to step into a world both serene and subtly magical. Here, the animal form becomes a potent narrative tool. Unlike humans, whose true nature can be veiled, animals reveal themselves through instinct and action. By depicting animals,

I explore and suggest the unspoken truths of the human character, the essence that lies beneath the surface.

‘Bookish’, watercolour on paper, 7.5 x 14cm, $400

@amberwjohnson 
https://amberwjohnson.wixsite.com/illustration

A faithful friend is the medicine of life*- our relationships with dogs best exemplify this ancient wisdom. Joy, love and unconditional trust we share with our pets have countless depictions in art.  However, we are reluctant to speak of trying times in our lives together.

Times when you feel the unspoken pain of your dog, when you try to read suffering from their eyes, when you resort to the most basic communication of sounds, smells and body language.

When you wish the touch of their fur and the smell of their skin could be extracted and kept in a bottle forever. When you slow down your breathing to calm the ailing dog, when you hum children’s lullabies like mantras bringing soothing relief to all, when you use your singalong happy voice while your soul is despairing, when you hand-feed minced turkey whispering encouragement.

This is a shade of love we rarely talk about, we don’t want to think about; it’s these times equally as joyous ones that describe our lives with our best friends. Happiness called Lusia  comes naturally like sunshine; troubled times offer darker contours to sunny highlights, creating a true, well-defined picture. 

*Ecclesiasticus 6:16

Lusia (pronounced Lusha) the Airedale terrier has been our scruffy sunshine for 11.5 years.

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Beata Tworek was born in Poland but she completed her higher education in conservation of cultural materials and cultural anthropology in Canberra. For over 30 years she worked as a conservator at the National Gallery of Australia.

Beata has been involved in photography all her life, including scientific, documentary and art photography. Since retirement she has focused on producing images with strong aesthetic qualities, with contemplative, focused approach to detail, study of harmony and texture. Her work has been exhibited in several group and solo exhibitions at small community galleries, Photoaccess, School of Art and Design ANU, Megalo Print Studio and most recently at Q Gallery in Ainslie.

Dogs have played a major role in Beata’s life from early childhood. She is very interested in behavioural studies of dogs as well as enjoying small daily activities together. She is known as the Airedale lady in her inner north suburb of Canberra.

‘Lusia’, digitally enhanced photograph, 50 x 50cm, NFS

I created this imaginative contemporary work to draw the attention of the audiences’ eye to the beauty held within small details; a delicate Splendid Blue Wren spotted in a country garden, a paint brush I use daily, a glass from my studio, gum leaves and peppercorn berries hold memories from childhood.

Every day we observe something small that is over-looked or forgotten in our busy lives. Our focus and attention is distracted so often by the obligation to be elsewhere, attending to the necessary or the urgent aspects of our lives, complicated by the fast-paced world of technology.

By directing our gaze to the small and beautiful details, we quieten the mind, slow the breath and in so doing, feed the soul. Immersing ourselves in art and creativity can be restorative and healing.

This work was created using watercolour and pencils on board. The unique colours, shapes and textures of Australian flora and fauna are a source of inspiration.

‘Narcissus’, watercolour and pencil on board, 25 x 30cm, $440

Packing up the Guest's Bed is a watercolour and ink illustration I completed in memory of my late dog, Maton, who we lost a few months ago. This A3 piece was a meaningful way to process my grief and capture his spirit, even if I can't pat him anymore. 

‘Packing up the Guest’s Bed’, watercolour and ink illustration

Meet Leon- He is fun, cheeky, and full of character. With one eye on you, he's always ready to laugh with you (or at you). 

This painting is a playful interpretation of the rainbow lorikeet, one of Australia’s most iconic native birds. Leon's vibrant plumage, and expressive gaze capture his lively spirit and cheeky personality.

I work with bold, expressive strokes and a vibrant colour palette, leaning into abstraction and loose, gestural mark making to bring movement and life to the animals I paint. My works often feature misregistered marks, playful outlines, and unexpected accents of colour to capture their dynamic nature.

Much of my inspiration comes from the spirit of everyday moments and a deep connection to place, culture and nature. Leon is part of an ongoing exploration of Australian fauna and flora. He is a playful connection to home and the characters that inhabit it. I really enjoy giving these animals personalities and weaving storytelling around them. 

‘Leon’, mixed media on board, 40 x 51cm, $400

http://www.artbybrenda.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/brendastajcicart

In The Last Witness, I aim to portray more than just an animal. This raven-like figure emerges as a vessel of memory, grief, and persistence. It is not simply a bird—it’s the last observer of a fading world.

Created using graphite and red pencil on textured paper, the piece invites the viewer into a suspended moment. The lines are layered and erratic, moving like wind or decay, giving the sense that the creature is unraveling—feathers transforming into threads, form dissolving into emotion. Red accents hover like petals or ash, hinting at wounds or metamorphosis.

The creature’s gaze is central: steady, piercing, yet hollow. It looks not just outward, but inward—at us, and through us. Its claws don’t grip in strength, but out of fragile insistence. Despite its deconstruction, it remains—broken but standing.

I often use animal forms as metaphors for internal states. My background in illustration and sculpture has taught me to honor both precision and ambiguity. This piece was born in a moment of personal unrest—a response to a collective sense of loss, the silence after chaos.

Ravens are traditionally seen as messengers between life and death, symbols of transformation. Here, I’ve used that symbolism as a foundation for something more intimate. The creature becomes a mirror for viewers—an invitation to reflect on what remains when everything else has vanished.

I see this drawing not as a depiction of darkness, but as a quiet act of endurance. The disintegration of form doesn’t suggest defeat; it offers a different kind of survival—one rooted in witnessing, remembering, and accepting impermanence.

The Last Witness is part of a larger inquiry in my work: how animals, real or imagined, can carry the emotional weight of the unseen. In this exhibition, among a celebration of animalia, I offer this piece as a moment of stillness—a space to consider the fragile line between beauty and ruin, form and formlessness.

32. ‘The Last Witness’ 21 x 29cm, $700

www.farobijan.com

https://www.instagram.com/forough_bijan

Felicite Briggs completed her tertiary education in fine arts in Sydney majoring in drawing and printmaking.  She now lives on a rural property in the Southern Tablelands of NSW, where her time is divided between her home studio - where she creates her art, her six rescue dogs, and her large garden. 

Felicite’s works are extremely personal.  Each piece reflects a memory or event that is/was part of her life.  Currently her preferred medium is coloured pencils. She loves their portability, vibrant colour range, and the level of detail she can achieve with them, in her drawing practice. She also works in watercolours and printmaking.

Felicite was a finalist in several art prizes in 2024 & 2025 

Felicite’s works are held in private collections, appeared in a group exhibition “Life in Colour” at Tyger Gallery (Yass, NSW) in 2024, and featured in a dual exhibition, “Symbiosis” at SHAC Gallery (Robertson, NSW) in 2024.

This cheeky Kelpie pup came to us last year.  Her irrepressible personality and boundless energy changed the whole dynamic of the household and she has kept us amused, and on our toes, from day one. I loved the juxtaposition of this typical working farm-dog perched on a designer chair, and obviously not doing life too tough.  She still loves that chair! 

In this drawing I wanted to convey a sense of fun, her character, and a different take on a working dog portrait.

33. ‘Candy’, coloured pencil, 100 x 85cm, $900

www.instagram.com/felicitebriggs

Animals, real or imagined, often appear in my 'psychologically realistic' paintings. The images tell stories and reflect my memories, moods and current affairs. My art making process is intuitive and often compulsive. I use art to relieve my feelings, to survive and to enjoy life. There is no right or wrong way of looking at my paintings. 

"Story boards" triptych (2025), each panel is 15x90cm, altogether 3 panels, can be displayed in any order but here is my suggestion in the picture, medium is acrylic on pre-stretched canvas.

53. $300 each

'Hey Up There in the River Red Gum'

This painting was inspired by a visit to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, where I had the chance to get up close to some of Australia’s most iconic animals. Meeting the koalas and learning about them was a truly memorable experience, and I created this piece to capture that connection and preserve the feeling of the moment.

Koalas have always been one of my favourite animals. I painted them nestled in a river red gum tree—one of their preferred habitats—to reflect both their natural environment and the calm, curious personalities I saw in them that day. This work is both a tribute to these beautiful creatures and a way of remembering that special encounter.

54. 121cm x 76cm $1800

Since 1996, Lex Sorrentino has been pushing the boundaries of mixed media clay art. As a self-

taught sculptor, her minimal training has been a liberation, allowing her to approach clay with

refreshing freedom and no preconceived notions of its "proper" use. Lex famously quips,

"Ignorance is not only bliss, but genuinely constructive, particularly in a medium as adaptable as

Polymer & Air-Dry clay."

Her artistic heart belongs to whimsical art, where she masterfully blends various clays with diverse

mediums to birth captivating creations. This distinct style has garnered international recognition,

notably a first-place award in the International Polymer Clay Association Sculpture Award

Global Exhibition 2023 and a close second in the People’s Choice Sculpture for Clyde 2023.

Beyond her studio, Lex is a dedicated educator, offering weekly classes and workshops in Oxley,

Canberra, and serving as the Co-Ordinator for the long-running Contemporary Craft Retreat at

Tuggeranong Southern Cross Club, celebrating its 14th year.

55. ‘ Unicorn’ Artstone and apoxie sculpt over wire armature, with glass eyes, hardened fabrics standing on wood 63 × 60 × 18cm $850

56. ‘ Greyhound’ Artstone and apoxie sculpt over wire armature, with glass eyes, hardened fabrics standing on wood 65 × 50 × 22 cm $750

57. ‘Wall Trophy’ (Wall hanging) Artstone and apoxie sculpt over wire armature, with glass eyes, hardened fabrics $550

58. ‘Fish’ Artstone and apoxie with glass eyes and hardened fabric $950

www.contemporarycraftretreat.com

www.originalartdollsbylex.com

www.facebook.com/Sculptural-Emanations-280399525504485/

My work begins in stillness, among the quiet rhythms of my garden and the land around me. I listen to the silent labour of growth and the flicker of wings in sunlight.

These are the subtle signs of nature, often overlooked but always present. Withcharcoal and acrylic, I try to give voice to what usually goes unsaid. Charcoal, raw and earthy allows me to draw directly from the rhythm of the natural world. Its marks are gestural, like fleeting shadows or whispered thoughts.

Brushmarks of quality acrylic bring light and layering in a way that builds stories, capturing not only what is seen, but what is felt. Each painting is an act of reflection and reverence. I take time to observe, to notice the quiet resilience in a wilted flower, the grace of a bird resting, the cycle of life renewing itself season after season.

These small, sacred moments find their way onto canvas not as exact replicas, but as emotional impressions.

“I See You Too” 76 x 76 cm $650