february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery

february newsletter ―

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner has been busy. This Friday he unveils Rhyming Couplets, a solo exhibition of extraordinary landscape paintings based around Brickenden Estate, Longford. We are thrilled to be welcoming Louise Archer and family from Brickenden Estate to open the exhibition.
Luke has also been selected as a Glover Prize finalist. Also making the cut is fellow Handmark painter, Peter Gouldthorpe. Congratulations to both.

As always, Handmark has a huge Glover weekend planned – and this year is no exception. Mark it in your diary and read on for details.

Finally, Kudos to abstract painter Jeewan Suwal who has been nominated by QVMAG as one of Tasmania’s most exciting emerging artists.

Allanah Dopson
Director

exhibition — luke wagner: rhyming couplets

Published 1 February 2026

Luke Wagner revisits his beloved Norfolk Plains and returns with transcendent paintings of sublime beauty. Arguably, the new landscapes in his Rhyming Couplets exhibition are among Luke’s best works.

The countryside around Brickenden Estate, in the Northern Midlands, is a magnet for Luke. A place he has painted many times. “I like the idea of repetition,” he tells us. “Every time the land reveals a different face. Different light, different perception and a different season.” The verdant greens of spring, and a late summer palette of red and ochre come to life in his latest collection.

Luke’s oils on linen are not loud, “they whisper and carry a quiet, considered social dimension. I try to evoke, rather than tell.” His agricultural landscapes draw attention to places long shaped by human use. “These are lived-in, worked environments that carry histories of Aboriginal custodianship, colonisation, and ongoing rural life.”

In the lush spring tableau, Light Insists, Dark Replies, Neither Wins, we sense “people have been here for many generations” with a majestic bunya tree holding court over a dense grove of foliage. In the ethereal, Questioning Voices, we gaze across the Macquarie River as light fades over the sweeping vista. “This whispers the history of all the people who have been here before us.”

Luke Wagner’s Rhyming Couplet Exhibition opens at Handmark this Friday and runs until March 9

glover weekend — handmark celebrations

Published 1 February 2026

Every March, art enthusiasts flock to Evandale to celebrate colonial landscape painter John Glover. Once again, Handmark is at the forefront of Glover Prize celebrations. In the past fifteen years, Handmark has curated a landscape exhibition to coincide with the Glover Prize, firstly at our Gallery in Evandale and latterly, working with Lydia Nettlefold at the Clarendon Arms. This year is extra special. Acclaimed artist, John Lendis, will be unveiling a solo show of new paintings.

To celebrate the exhibition opening, a dinner with fabulous local produce – and live jazz – will be held at the hotel.

Lydia Nettlefold always puts together a special menu to celebrate our exhibitions and John Lendis, whom she recently visited in the Cotswolds is one of her favourite Handmark artists.

Meanwhile, Handmark painters, Luke Wagner and Peter Gouldthorpe have been selected as finalists in the 2026 Glover Prize. It’s the 8th time for both of them: “My painting, After a Hard Winter, depicts the last of the winter snow high on an alpine Plateau,” Peter tells us. “I was trekking one day and stumbled across this scene. It just stuck with me.”

Handmark’s John Lendis Exhibition opens on Thursday March 5 at the Clarendon Arms Hotel in Evandale from 5pm and runs until April 13. Please call the Clarendon Arms on 6391 8181 to book your place for the opening night dinner.

rising star — jeewan suwal: emerging art accolade

Published 1 February 2026

Our small island is bursting with creative talent. And Handmark’s Jeewan Suwal has just been officially recognised as one of the emerging artists we should keep on our radar.

The RISE Awards recognise up-and-coming Tasmanian artists. Each year, the curators at Launceston’s QVMAG select a handful of emerging artists whom they have earmarked as future stars. Jeewan is one of just 11 people selected for RISE 2026. “This came completely out of the blue and was a total surprise, but I feel very honoured to be chosen,” Jeewan says.

Born and bred in Nepal, Jeewan has only been in Tasmania for five years but is clearly making his mark on the local arts scene. The muted colours of his abstract landscapes drip with powerful emotion as evidenced in his three paintings selected for the RISE Exhibition: Mt Wellingtoness, is a homage to the ever-present kunanyi: “Our beautiful mountain always gives me peace of mind and makes me feel protected.”

Hobart’s omnipresent River sparks happiness. Echo of Derwent River was painted on a still winter’s day. “The silence. The reflections. I feel eternal joy.” Jeewan also ventures to the Tasman Peninsula and another special place. His painting, The Remarkable Cave exudes drama. “The grey sky, and the dark blue of the Southern Ocean. The powerful image of the rock and light.”

The RISE Exhibition has just opened at Launceston’s QVMAG and runs until May 17

january newsletter ―

Published 11 January 2026

Happy New Year – 2026 is shaping up to be full of excitement with the gallery welcoming new exhibitions every month.

We kick off with perennial favourite, Jonathan Partidge, who unveils wonderful new multi-panelled landscapes in his Pathways to Bliss exhibition which opens this Friday.
Later in the month, get ready to be wowed by the extraordinary new paintings of Faridah Cameron in Becoming and Dissolving and the launch of her book, Letters to Dead Artists.

And that’s just the start. We also have exhibitions from Michael McWilliams, Luke Wagner and John Lendis, and unveil the artistic results of a collaboration with the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. So much ahead. Read on to find out what January has in store!

Best wishes

Allanah Dopson
Director

upcoming exhibition — jonathan partridge: pathways to bliss

Published 11 January 2026

Renowned Tasmanian artist, Jonathan Partridge, searches for the ‘Pathway to Bliss’ and finds it in the natural world. He shares this joy and wonder in the exquisite collection of new works from his upcoming exhibition.

Jonathan’s multi-panelled landscapes unfold as immersive panoramas. Delicate layering of Tasmania’s raw beauty – its flora and fauna – takes us on a journey of meditative contemplation. “I seek to elevate the natural world and our fragile interconnectedness with it,” Jonathan explains. “Communing with nature is deeply spiritual. It’s where I come alive and find my personal bliss. I hope my art encourages others to seek out their pathways.”

Aptly named Pathways to Bliss, Jonathan touches the heavens in this exhibition. Amongst the beautiful collection of new paintings and limited-edition prints, is his largest work, Walking up Mt Anne. Painted in four panels, we look out over Lake Pedder as the sun slowly sets, the ring of mountains reflected in the calm water. “The silence and the solitude. This was a moment of bliss.”

Jonathan is excited about this exhibition, which is an evolution of his previous works, especially print-making: “I haven’t made any new prints in years, and this collection has a different feel. More drama perhaps?” Above all, this is a joyful collection. A homage to natural Tasmania. Pure bliss.

Jonathan Partridge’s Pathways to Bliss exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 9 and runs until Monday 26 January.

late january exhibition — faridah cameron: becoming and dissolving

Published 11 January 2026

Transitions: Day to night; spring to winter; raw to ripe. These are the precious markers of time that painter Faridah Cameron captures so poignantly in her Becoming and Dissolving solo show.

In Faridah’s painting Dawn, a magnificent sun rises and pushes the moon into the night sky. In Ripening the canvas is split by a jagged seam. On one side the fruit is raw, on the other it is ripe for eating. “These are the transitions that happen day in and day out in the natural world. We let them go unnoticed, but they are important marks in our life,” Faridah tells us.

Inspired by a passion for sewing and textiles, Faridah has developed her own unique style. Extraordinary abstracts are intricate in their minute detailing and divine patterns. Tiny stitch-like marks speak of fabrics and threads. “Simple mark-making that adds up to something very complex. Just like stitching when you are sewing.”

This talented creative is also an author. Faridah will be launching her book Letters to Dead Artists, at the exhibition, and her musings, like the one to John Olsen, highlights art is in the eye of the beholder: “The truth is, John, that I’ve never really liked your paintings… I realise it’s presumptuous of me to pass judgment like this. What do I know? One’s response to art is always personal and subjective, coloured by experience.”

Faridah Cameron’s Becoming and Dissolving exhibition opens at Handmark on Friday January 30 and runs until Monday February 16.

December Newsletter

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway rings in Christmas with a festive collection of floating flowers. We unveil incredible new paintings in his Quiet Garden exhibition which opens on Friday. Please join us for some fabulous art and Christmas cheer!

Still looking for that special Christmas gift? Jewellery perhaps? As seen in our recent Jewellery Showcase, Handmark represents Tasmanian’s top artisans. Our recent showcase includes some wonderful new baubles from Natalie Holtsbaum, Anna Weber, Tonya Gilbett, Emily Snadden, Janine Combes, Diane Allison, Linda van Niekerk, Sarah Farquhar-Still, Charles Wyatt, Sandy Wrightson, Barbara Heath and Emma Bugg.

Thank you for your wonderful support throughout 2025. We look forward to a jam-packed 2026 with major exhibitions, including Michael McWilliams, and a big announcement in the new year involving our artists and Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Stay tuned!

A happy Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Allanah and the Handmark team.

upcoming exhibition — sebastian galloway: the quiet garden

Published 11 January 2026

Sebastian Galloway paints ultra-detailed flowers dripping with saturated hues that are magically suspended in space. But, in his latest exhibition, The Quiet Garden, he adds a new softness with flowers fading into the mist.

Flowers – so realistic it’s impossible to comprehend they are not photographs – float through the air. Colours, saturated and vivid, leave an indelible mark: “Flowers are the perfect natural form with their texture and detail. Very few things in nature have the endless spectrum of colours that they have. Flowers are an endless source of inspiration and subject matter,” Sebastian tells us.

Since his last Handmark exhibition two years ago, Sebastian has been experimenting. The copper plates he always painted on have been replaced with a grey stainless steel that allows the colour to explode even more vividly. He also introduces a ‘misting style’ where his bright flowers now slowly fade into the background.

This is brilliantly executed in his largest work, Magnolias in the Mist. A bunch of beautiful white magnolias start out sharply in focus before disappearing into the mist. “This style adds a new softness. I want the person standing in front of my paintings to be engulfed by a peace and tranquillity.”

Sebastian Galloway’s The Quiet Garden exhibition opens this Friday, December 12, and runs until January 5.

a favourite returns — natalie holtsbaum: exquisite earrings

Published 11 January 2026

It’s been more than decade since her last Handmark showing, but jeweller extraordinaire Natalie Holtsbaum is back – and with stunning results. She has just delivered the most exquisite earrings to Handmark Gallery.

In the intervening years, Natalie has been personal ‘Art Maker’ for MONA’s David Walsh and Kirsha Kaechele, an incredible journey that even included making ‘vagina shaped’ cutlery. But Natalie is tinkering with her own jewellery once again, and has dropped off a small collection of earrings to Handmark. “It’s been pure, exquisite joy,” she says.

All have long drops and round tops in a style that dates back to ancient Egypt “where goldsmiths crafted metal and stones into shimmering pendants earrings. This is a shape that traces a line through time, and I have always been fascinated by how certain forms return again and again, as if they refuse to leave the human imagination.”

Some of Natalie’s earrings glisten with glorious gemstones. Pendants of indigo topaz and faceted green amethyst. Others embrace a cutting edge ‘sculpting medium’ that she developed. This involves replacing gems with epoxy pendants coated in a special German paint that shines with ground mother-of-pearl or nine carat gold. “This is something special. It adds magic.”

Natalie Holtsbaum’s new jewellery is on show at Handmark Gallery