By Tyler Wright
The Emerald Hills Hub is now home to the debut exhibition of 70-year-old Officer local Chris Russo, showcasing paintings of plants and the environment.
The Through My Eyes exhibition came about after Russo’s children decided to surprise their mother, who has been painting for around 40 years, with a surprise 70th birthday present she would never forget; her own exhibition.
“I wasn’t expecting that at all, of course, I’ve never had an exhibition and I painted in my own time when I’m not babysitting… I was very surprised, but excited as well,” Russo said.
Russo said she began painting after experiencing an anxiety attack after the birth of her fifth child in 1981.
“I eventually went to the doctors and he said it’s time I did something for myself, ‘is there anything that I ever wanted to do? ‘
And I said, ‘I’ve always wanted to draw or paint…’ [and] a friend of mine from the primary school, I had heard that she had small classes at home; teaching or painting, and I contacted her and she took me on…and over a couple of years she was rocking babies because I had another two babies after that. So while I’m painting, she was nursing the baby.”
Since then, Russo has drawn inspiration from the environment around her; snapping images for her to then create an artwork from.
“I like things that are a bit different, like not just an open rose, but a bud where the petals are going different ways… I think people need to know or realise what flower it is,” she said.
“Magnolia, for example; I like the odd shape of the flowers, they go their own way…the unusual sort of intersections of things that you don’t usually notice.
“Gum leaves…quite often they’ll have a bit eaten out of them or something, that’s what makes it a bit different.”
After 40 years of painting, around 27 of Russo’s works will be on display from Friday 14 January to Friday 27 January at the Hills Hub.
While the pieces are not for sale, given most are owned by Russo’s own family and friends, she hopes visitors can enjoy her paintings.
“There’s quite a few flowers and scenery and a couple with buildings. I went for a trip to Miltenburg with my sister…I’ve painted this street scene in Miltenburg,,, all those old buildings that aren’t straight, but it turned out really well,” she said.
“I’m always taking photos of flowers and we go out in the desert…and I like painting brightly, I’m a fairly detailed painter.”
During the exhibition, Russo will be on location as an artist in residence; creating works while also answering questions from gallery visitors.
‘I’ve got two oil paintings started…I let them dry so that I could take them up there for this…so I’ll start doing the thicker paint in more detail now,” she said.
“It’s weird. I don’t know if I forgive my kids or not, but I think now that the paintings are up there…I feel better.”
The Hills Hub is located at 402 Belgrave-Gembrook Rd, Emerald VIC 3782.
