Exhibition runs: 29 April – 10 May 2025
Cecilia Cairns was born in 1944 and grew up at Merricks North on the Mornington Peninsula. This exhibition celebrates her life as an artist and teacher.
It is also a tribute to the apple orchard, her family and the home of her childhood.
The orchard is where she first saw familiar places, friends and family being transformed into works of art. It began the immersive artistic process that has always been at the heart of her work, aligning her creativity with nature and her social values.
“Cecilia Cairns finds energy and inspiration in the tangles of her family orchard. Her paintings illuminate the details of her life; her delight in the colours and shapes of domesticity; the harmony of people who work directly with the natural world and the interaction with the students in her art class.
Her work celebrates what she sees in the natural world and opens us, the viewers to where it might take us.”
Jill Sutton
“I try to express in painting the feelings that move me, and the things that matter. Not only the landscape in front of me, but how its connected to the people who are at work, keeping it all going, preserving the farm and the remaining bush.
I thank the people who have taught me to paint and to teach, either by example or academically which has been lifelong.
I continue to be inspired by the shared painting experiences we have in the Monday art Class.
And by the lifelong support of my family.”
Ceci Cairns
‘Apple Picking’, Cecilia Cairns, 2023, oil on board (masonite), 62 x 67cm.
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