Artists open studios to visitors for 6th Northern Illawarra Art Trail
Artists from Helensburgh to Thirroul are ready to welcome visitors to their studios for the 6th Northern Illawarra Art Trail on November 29 and 30
The first Northern Illawarra Art Trail (NIART) was held in 2022. The public was invited to visit the homes and studios of artists living between Helensburgh and Thirroul. It has always been a fun weekend for both artists and visitors, providing information not only about where the artists live, but how they work.
The sixth Art Trail will be held on the weekend of 29 and 30 November from 10am to 4pm. This year we have 13 artists and 10 studios. Further information about them can be found on the NIART web page.
In addition to showing how the artists have decorated their studios and their homes, the Art Trail provides opportunities for visitors to purchase newly created works. We have listed some of the works available for sale from the artists in geographical order from Helensburgh to Thirroul.
Portal by Rowan, the artist who has brought colour to local life via a series of public murals, including the sporting scenes on water tanks at Helensburgh sportsfields
Sarah Rowan, 2 Hay Street, Helensburgh. Rowan is an award-winning “speed artist” and conference speaker, creating paintings very quickly for live audiences. She has also created many striking murals for otherwise drab walls. For more details, visit her website.
Glass Vase by Sue Roach; artwork by printmaker Karen Roach
Sue Roach and Jim Roach: 7 Stonehaven Road, Stanwell Tops: Sue is a watercolour painter and Jim creates amazing miniatures of fine buildings, which are available for inspection on site.
Karen Roach: 7 Stonehaven Road, Stanwell Tops: Karen is a printmaker who works with lino, canvas and paper. She works with Japanese wood block techniques.
Painting by Lindsey Leckey and Kieran Tapsell's collection, including Lobster & pot, candle holders, solar lights, herb jars and bird mugs
Lindsey Leckey: 14 Cassandra Place, Stanwell Park: Lindsey is a painter and ceramic sculptor.
Kieran Tapsell: 19 Stanwell Avenue, Stanwell Park: Author, potter and ceramic sculptor. Two books: Potiphar’s Wife: The Vatican’s Secret and Child Sexual Abuse (2024), Tales Old and New from Stanwell Park (2021) and assorted porcelain ceramics for sale. Porcelain downpipes, tree statues, towers, giant spider webs, fountains and garden sprinklers on display.
An Evening at the Theatre by Fred Marsh and a painting by Barbara Gray
Fred Marsh: 704 Lawrence Hargrave Drive, Coledale: Impressionist coastal, landscape and nocturnal paintings in oil and acrylic. Travel sketchbooks will also be on display.
Barbara Gray: 704 Lawrence Hargrave Drive, Coledale: Contemporary oil, acrylic and mixed media paintings.
Robin McKinley's garden sculptures and Graham Sinclair's Highway to Pass
Robin McKinley: 51 The Esplanade, Thirroul: Hand built ceramics for garden and exteriors.
Lionel King: 1/1 Redmond Avenue, Thirroul: Landscape water colours.
Graham Sinclair: Barracks Art Studios, 1 Church Street, Thirroul: A visual artist with a passion for reconstructing the landscape and still life through painting or sculpture.
Morning Surfers by Christine Hill, fish in stained glass by Tessa J. McMaugh, abstract painting by Ian Brown
Christine Hill: 2 Roxburgh Avenue, Thirroul: Artist and illustrator of coast and the escarpment
Tessa J. McMaugh: 2 Roxburgh Avenue, Thirroul: Stained glass, sculptures and mosaics
Ian Brown: 25 Cornock Avenue, Thirroul: Contemporary abstract painter and print maker.
The next Northern Illawarra Art Trail will be on the weekend of 29 & 30 November 2025, from 10am to 4 pm. For more information, visit the NIART website
