Jonathan Bowden’s Art Review of Sandra Petersen’s Art Work 2013

Sandra is an unusually resourceful individual and is someone to be watched!

Over the last year, I have learned that Sandra is one of those rare people who has the capacity to reinvent themselves when they are confronted with something new and difficult.

Certainly her paintings represent an extraordinary flowering in a very short period of time.  Between July and December 2012, Sandra packed her car with sketchbooks, cameras and pastels, driving to the East Coast of Tasmania in all sorts of weather.

Then she would come back to turn her sketches into paintings.

As her Mentor for painting, I have been closely involved in all stages of the planning and producing of these works, 22 complete pastel works, and 4 large works of mixed media.  Over this time, Sandra has developed a method of fixing pastel which allows her work to be viewed without glass if necessary.  Her “Edge of the World” pastel, after application of her fixative, survived a very heavy storm with no loss of pigment.  Considerable interest has been taken in her development of pastel use by myself and other pastellists, including Leoni Duff, Glover award People’s choice and winner of many major art prises Australia wide.

Sandra has also made herself responsible for the design, hanging and publicity for her exhibition.  Along the way she has impressed all of us involved with her project, with her drive and generosity.  I highly approve of her choice of venue for her exhibition, the Northern Club, a magnificent tunnel of archways and mirrors, woodfires and secret curtained dining rooms in the best nineteenth century Launceston Colonial Gothic style.

Sandra has shown that she is entirely capable of managing her  project, and I recommended that she take over her own project management instead of myself.  I also recommend that she seek approval from Arts Tasmania to vary her grant to include Leoni Duff as her Exhibition Mentor for the final professional presentation of her work.

Rebekah Deane, Licencee, has been consistently friendly and helpful to Sandra and her project, making he catering for the event the best Leoni Duff  and I have experienced at an exhibition opening.

Arts Tasmania under the Arts for Disability scheme that awarded Sandra this generous grant, made it possible for her to undertake this exhibition. 

Here’s to Sandra Petersen, Painter and Poet of the Tasmanian East Coast.