Di Deppeler. I have worked with recycled wood for over 40 years and have exhibited in solo and group exhibitions, and received a number of awards for my work, both paintings and sculptural furniture, I have also worked in community arts projects. The sculptural work is based around recycling wood that would otherwise have been destroyed. This recycled timber defines the design. Extensive travels and a love of trees inform the work and completing a Masters in Art, (sculpture) at Monash gave me a broader view and new skills.
My challenges and satisfaction are in making disparate pieces of found and recycled wood, come together with as many marks of age and usage retained as possible. It is the imperfections in life, and certainly in myself and my materials that interest me. It is fun, challenging, sometimes frustrating, mostly exciting, the final result can be good, bad or indifferent. My paintings are oils, acrylics, or mixed media and are mainly of trees leaves and old buildings/objects, seen and photographed in travels and at home.
Eileen Thurgood has been involved with the arts in East Gippsland for many years. Her initial media was black and white photography, especially photographing the often overlooked details to be found in nature.
An interest in wanting to present her work in multiple images, rather than a single framed image, led to her exploring handmade boxes and containers. In turn, this introduced her to the incredible world of artist books.
Throughout Thurgood’s development has been the underlying influence of the Surrealists and the practice of collage and assemblage. Her work reflects the idea that randomly gathered objects and images when placed together form unfamiliar relationships. While still recognizable, these elements often assume novel associations encouraging the viewer to see them in a totally new way.
The boxes and artist books are for the viewer to investigate and present an opportunity for them to form their own interpretation and connection.
Thurgood has participated in many group exhibitions since completing her Bachelor of Arts (Visual Arts and Post Graduate Diploma with Monash University) and a number of exhibitions shared with one or two other artists.
