Graham Austin
Fine Artist - Acrylics, Oils and Watercolour (Allambie Heights, NSW)
Australian Watercolour Institute [AWI], Emeritus President

Graham Austin was born in 1941. He studied at the National Art School, East Sydney from 1957 to 1961. He became a member of the Australian Watercolour Institute (AWI), in 1972 and was President from 1989 to 2003. During this time he was made an Honoury Life Member. He was President of the Peninsula Art Society from 1986 to 1988, and Foundation Senior Vice President / President of the Drummoyne Art Society from 1964 to 1967.

Graham has held several solo exhibitions and participated in many group exhibitions both here and overseas, including New Zealand, Mexico, UK, Spain, Canada, Korea and Hong Kong. He has made study tours to the Kimberley and the Northern Territory, Bali, UK, France, Italy and Singapore.

He has won over 30 major awards and received many commendations. His work is represented in Manly Art Gallery, Lismore Art Trust, Drummoyne; Ryde Warringah and Waverley Councils, Montrose Wines, Tomago Aluminium, Trinity Grammar, Kincoppal College and many private collections in Australia and abroad.

Graham first became interested in art and becoming an artist at a very early age. The oldest report goes back to when he was in a cot, crying. His grandfather told the story of how he said to his mother "Give him a pencil and paper, that always shuts them up". He claimed Graham drew the joining of two walls and the ceiling plus the light hanging from the ceiling. That was his grandfather's story and Graham sticks with it.

At school he was always drawing. Classmates were always asking him to draw in their books for them, or they would want to copy his drawings in their own books. When attending high school his father said, "If you go well in your school work I'll send you to art classes, if not it will be coaching college". He went to coaching college where he fascinated the tutors with drawings and cartoons which they always confiscated. Somehow they taught him algebra and trigonometry which was promptly forgotten on leaving school.

The main influences on him as an artist now are the marvellous effects of aerial landscape and the sense of spirit that emanates from the landscape and emanates from the spirit. He paints in spots, something akin to the pointillists but is more interested in creating a spotted abstraction which pulls together like a photograph when viewed from a distance.

The main themes and subjects of his art works are mostly the abstracted creation of landscape where water and wind carve the design, sculpting the moving surface. He likes the sense of rocks and trees becoming spotted texture, sometimes standing alone or gathering in groups just like people, intermingling in life and becoming a tide of movement, a current of aerial patterns.

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