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Who's Garry
 “I do not paint to portray the obvious. There is always an irony, always a contradiction in my work.”
What’s there to know about me? Well I can’t remember a time I haven’t been drawing or painting. I always knew I would be an artist. It hasn’t been a choice, it is who I am.
And because my art is who I am it does not fit a style or “ism”. There have been times I have been criticized for this but I will have and will continue to express myself in my own way.
I refuse to be put in a box so I am continually evolving along with the world around me. This is not art that depends on labels to give it meaning but something I try to create that is unique and uplifting without the sentimentality or arrogance of so much of modern art.
Whether it is a wombat lopping across a paddock as in the painting A Way or the dramatic heat of Mahakala all of the wide range of artist prints we are offering through my Garry Duncan Limited web site are undeniably my vision and my voice – art has no boundaries and I will continue to explore the unlimited possibilities.
I have been a passionate, practical and unapologetic conservationist for over 30 years. My wife and I have revegetated our 130 acre Murray River property over the past 20 years and Big Scrub, 1600 acres of heritage listed native mallee to protect it from the fate of the other native shrub. Visit my Rant to learn more.
Everything I do, in my work and in my day to day labours celebrates the beauty of what we have in the natural world and also to remind and warn of what can be lost.
When you hang one of these wall prints on your wall I hope you will celebrate the beauty and heed the warning with me.
I usually let my art speak for itself but I know some of you might want to know a few things about me.
Here’s a Snapshot :
- Born sometime last century - Ferntree Gully Victoria
- Apprenticeship with John Frawley at John Frawley Signs - Mid teens.
- Sold my sign writing business to paint full time - Can’t remember the year but I had a mullet. (A Mullet is a very bad haircut, popular in the 1970s in Australia.)
- Raised my kids with my wife on our property with dogs, pet kangaroos, chickens and horses and painted. Planted trees and painted. Proved you can live by your brush and painted.
- Had quite a bit of work in Canberra in the 80s, some major art work designs were commissioned for the Perpetual Trustees Building, and the Canberra Airport Brindabella Aerospace Industrial Park.
- The 1990s was the decade of the bridge for me. I continued to evolve in my painting and sculpting and gained recognition as an important part of the Australian art landscape. I also took on two controversial projects in South Australia, the art work for the Hindmarsh Island Bridge and the mural and sculpture for the Berri Bridge. Read some of the Articles here.
My relationship with the indigenous people in South Australia has been as important to me as my relationship with the land and water. I found it intriguing to work on the bridge projects with them as I often am called on to be the bridge to express the indigenous viewpoint and the message from the land to the rest of the community.
- You can walk all over my work at the Darwin Airport. I designed the carpet and glass art work at the Darwin International Airport. Hope you get a chance to go there sometime. The Australian Top End is an experience of a lifetime.
- A few unexpected honours have come my way in the past few years. I have been judge for the Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize - quite an honor but I had to wear the tux. I was nominated for Australian of the Year in 2004 for my work in conservation of the environment – didn’t get the gong but great to be recognized in the nomination. And I guess I’m somebody now, I’m in the 2008 Who’s Who of South Australia!
Exhibitions:
Well there have been a few – quite a few and more times then not we have had really good and often funny people doing the opening address honours – in the meantime I have gotten to know a lot of politicians, comediennes and actors and other famous people and they have gotten to know me.
Here’s a list of exhibitions if you are interested. By the way all of the Garry Duncan Limited Edition Artists Prints have been featured at major exhibitions.
- Garry Duncan – Southlands Gallery – 1982
- Famous Australians – Garry Duncan – Southlands Gallery - 1982
- Garry Duncan – Southlands Gallery – 1983
- Canvas to Canberra – Canberra Grammar – 1983
- Canvas to Canberra – Canberra Grammar – 1984
- Garry Duncan – Southlands Gallery – 1984
- Lifeline Art Exhibition – Albury NSW – 1984
- The Riverland, Not Just Houseboats and Oranges – Riverland and Adelaide - 1984
- Garry Duncan - Southlands Gallery – Canberra ACT 1984
- Canvas to Canberra – Canberra Grammar – 1986
- All This in 200 Years - Southlands Gallery, Canberra – 1986
- The Powerful Art of Garry Duncan – Southlands Gallery - 1986
- Renmark Centennary Rotary Art Show – Renmark 1987
- Universal Spirit of Man - Riverland Multicultural Festival - 1988
- Grand Pix Exhibition – Sponsored by Adelaide Grand Prix - 1989
- Canvas to Canberra – Canberra Grammar – 1989
- Duncan Duncan and Ressom – A Family in Art – Barry Newton Gallery
- Garry Duncan - Southlands Gallery, Gallery – 1992
- Crow in the Rainbow – Barry Newman Gallery – 1994
- Harnessing the Horse – Fremantle Trotting Club – 1995
- Bubble Road – ART Gallery – Sydney – 1996
- Adelaide Festival of Arts – Duncan & Darby – Adelaide SA 1996
- Garry Duncan – Trevor Harvey Gallery - 1998
- Rainbow Frontier – Framed, The Darwin Gallery - 1998
- Paintings in Rhythm and Verse – Trevor Victor Gallery - 1999
- The Echo of Australia – Trevor Victor Harvey Gallery– Spring 2000
- Memories and Imaginings – Trevor Victor Harvey Gallery – Spring 2001
- Garry Duncan – Framed Gallery Darwin – April to May - 2002
- Garry Duncan, Australian Visionary & Conservation Artist – Rafferty’s - 2004
- Garry Duncan – A Retrospective – New Land Gallery – Dec 2005
- Connected – Gallery Ten Eleven -
- Spring Art, Loretta Art Exhibition (featured artist) Loretta College –Adelaide SA 2006
- London Exhibition – 2007
- US Exhibition
Public Works:
- Perpetual Trustees Building, Canberra
- Mural at Berri Bridge 1998
- Mural at Hindmarsh Island Bridge
- Art work and design at Darwin Airport
- Brindabella Fella at Brindabella Airpark in Canberra
- Gluepot Reserve Windows and Art Work
- Cleland Conservation Park Mural
Commissions:
If you look around you will probably see my work in the most surprising of places – as part of the ATSIC Aboriginal sport, health and recreation promotion, on Ducks Unlimited Australia posters.
And from time to time you might come across some of my work on fine Australian wines. I have designed labels for Hardys – home of Grange, Kingston Estates, Bonneyview Wines,…
Have also from time to time been known to enjoy the contents.
Collections:
It is a great honour when people purchase more than one of your work and who also add a Garry Duncan to the other major works they have collected. Here’s a few names of some of the collections I have contributed to. There’s a fair few more with names you would recognize but I like to respect their privacy.
- Bank of SA
- Hardy Winery
- National Australia Bank
- Woodberry Collection
- Oswald Family
- Ducks Unlimited
- Clark Family
- Diamond Beach Casino – Darwin
- Liulichang Cultural Street - China
- Brook McCormick – Chicago
- Bacardi Co Ltd – Puerto Rico
- Murray Darling Basin Commission
- Henry Jones Co. Ltd - Adelaide
Featured Articles and Publications:
I seem to get written about a lot. There’s an articles page you can go to and here’s a few more places you can find my work or people writing about it.
- Art and Australia– Featured Paintings - 1985
- Arts National – Garry Duncan Artist of the Riverland - 1985
- Time Magazine Australia –Manning Clark Article, Kakadu - 1988
- Australian Art Collector - Featured Paintings - 2000
- The World of Antiques and Art – Garry Duncan Painter in Paradise -2001
- Craft Arts International – Featured Paintings - 2001
- Craft Arts International - Featured Paintings - 2003
- Antiques and Art in Victoria – Connected, 2003
- Craft Arts International – Featured Paintings - 2004
Paintings featured on covers of :
- Crystal - Cover of Riverland White Pages Directory - 1993
- Hot to Trot – Harnessing the Horse Exhibition and cover of Arts Unlimited - 1995
- Turning Away – Book of poetry by Keith McFarlane - 2007
- Murray River Pudding – Loretta Art Exhibition Cover 2006
- Rising – CD Cover of Midsummer’s Night Jonathan Paget -2008
- Karelia – CD Cover My Heart Keeps Watch - 2005
Sponsorships:
As you can tell I have and will continue to promote and actively do something about our natural environment. If you go to Garry’s Rant you’ll have a chance to hear more about some of these organisations and make a contribution yourself. Better yet when you buy a Garry Duncan Limited Edition Artists Print we make a contribution for you if you like.
Some of the organisations I have sponsored:
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