About GILLIAN ELLETT BANKS, Australia
Gillian trained as an art teacher at Prahran Tech, RMIT and Melbourne University, after Matriculating in her home state of Victoria, and later adding a Fine Arts Degree (Deakin Uni ).
Married to Ian and with four children,(Damon, Lisa, Christopher dec. and Warren) Gillian has lived in the Northern Territory since 1968, where the unique landscapes, range of tropical climate and challenging light quality has provided the perfect landscape painter’s milieu.
Working over forty years in the Katherine Community as an Artist, Teacher, Tutor, and Mentor, helping to establish the Katherine Museum, two National Trust properties, the Loose Group of Artists, running Artist Camps, participating in Katherine Craft Group, Arts Katherine, K Show Society, serving as a past Board member of MAGNT, as a past President of the National Trust and currently serving as a Board member of GYRACC, NT’s Arts Panels and as a National Trust Councillor.
After majoring in Ceramics, Gillian now paints large to tiny scale Watercolour and gouache on paper, oils on stretched canvas and occasionally acrylics. A robust painting style, working quickly and delicately on many works in the studio at once to create spontaneous work which seems to lack detail, where precise brush strokes and paint placement reveal the story. Hot and humid atmosphere that appears to weigh as heavily as rocky escarpment, while in the heat shimmer, the escarpment appears to float. Idyllic water lilies also hide the real threat of man eating crocodiles.
The result is a visual record as well as a strong emotional response to the landscape.
| Bibliographies: | ‘The Sound of the Sky’ Daena Murray |
| ‘Australian Women Artists’ Max Germaine | |
| ‘Artists and Galleries of Australia’ Max Germaine |
| Awards: | The Katherine Prize in 1985 and again in 1991 |
| Galleries Choice, Esplanade Gallery, Darwin. 1986 |
| Acquired: | MAGNT, Darwin 10 pieces |
| Parliament House, Darwin. 2000 | |
| Katherine Prize Collection | |
| Lambert Collection | |
| Molomby & Molomby |
Gillian’s paintings have been represented in exhibitions spanning some thirty years in the Territory, Interstate and Internationally.
A full CV is available
