Sydney artist Gabrielle Penfold opened her exhibition, Oyster Oyster, at CLO Studios, Noosa Junction, to showcase her prolific works focused on beach scenes and ocean life.
Guests enjoyed Veuve Clicquot and oysters as they perused the 47 original pieces that celebrate the raw beauty of the NSW coastline, the rituals of dining and the oyster.
“Driving up and down the coastline oysters were always there, whether they were at a humble beach shack or served with a glass of champagne at a posh restaurant,“ Gabrielle said.
“I also like playing around with the idea of things being ancient and the time-worn rituals around food and eating. Oysters are so ancient. They were eaten by our First Nations people thousands of years ago and then they also have this immediacy to them. You can just shuck them and eat them in a moment.“
Gabrielle’s paintings also depict women of colour inhabiting these places in a comment on her own feelings of identity as an Australian-born Anglo-Indian woman.
“We have this fantastic beach culture in Australia but there’s a lot going on in my head about my place as a woman of colour in these spaces,“ she said.
The ideas explored in Oyster Oyster were nurtured from the very start with CLO Studio’s Chloe Tozer, a supporter of talented artists.
This collection will be on display for three weeks at CLO Studios, 8 Lanyana Way, Noosa Junction
