THE ARTISTS’ WAVE

ONCE KNOWN FOR THE ‘BLACK GOLD’ HIDDEN IN ITS CLIFFS, THESE DAYS THE COAL COAST IS RICH IN CREATIVE TALENT.

Once the domain of coal miners, the Coal Coast in NSW’S Illawarra region is now home to many creatives.

EVERY DAY PAINTER Paul Ryan paddles out into the ocean near his home in Thirroul, a small beach town in the northern Illawarra region known as the Coal Coast. Between waves, he sits and watches the sunlight dance through the clouds and illuminate the escarpment that towers above the sea, filling his mind with fresh inspiration. “It’s a magical place that creates its own weather and light — and it’s ever-changing,” he says. “It’s one of those places where every day I go out there I think, ‘I can’t believe I live here.’ ” Paul’s connection to the region runs deep — his family first moved to the Illawarra when he was eight, and though he’s lived elsewhere, he describes the Coal Coast as his “spiritual home”. The area also serves as his muse — the Archibald, Sulman and Wynne prizes finalist is best known for his moody and dynamic paintings of the region’s dramatic landscape. “Illawarra is this long, narrow strip of land, and the further north you go, the little strip gets narrower and narrower, until basically the cliffs are just dropping into the ocean,” he says. “That’s the landscape that I’ve been interested in living in for most of my life and painting for over 30 years.” Paul is one of many creatives, including D.H. Lawrence and Brett Whiteley, to have found inspiration on the Coal Coast. Long before it was a hub of creativity, however, it was a hub of industry. The area’s informal name is a nod to its mining heritage, which gave rise to a string of pretty coastal towns north of the metropolitan centre of Wollongong, and until recently, a staunchly blue-collar image. The collieries and steelworks that once defined the Illawarra have all but disappeared; these days, villages such as Austinmer, Bulli, Coalcliff, Coledale, Scarborough and Thirroul are best known for their café culture, surf beaches and their thriving arts communities. It’s the proximity to Sydney — a little over an hour south by car or train — coupled with unique natural beauty and an idyllic, small-town feel that attracts seachangers and artists alike. “There’s far more than just visual artists here,” adds Paul. “I have friends who are filmmakers, actors, musicians, poets — just about every sort of artist you can imagine is drawn to this area. And that’s something that didn’t exist to the same extent 30 years ago.” This recent influx of artists to the region has kicked off what gallery owner Aaron Fell-fracasso describes as “a renaissance period”. “We’ve seen a lot of new artists move down here and realise how good it is to live here,” Aaron says. “It’s not cheap but it’s cheaper than Sydney and it’s close enough to commute. This area was hidden behind a smog of BHP steelworks for so many years; now it’s a secret that’s well and truly out!” Aaron, who was born in Bulli and now lives 500 metres from the home he grew up in, is taking full advantage of the area’s creative fortune. His Thirroul gallery, The Egg & Dart, started in 2011 as a framing business and slowly began showing local artists’ work in a small nook in the shopfront. The casual exhibitions became so popular that in 2015, Aaron and his wife Ann Eklund moved the framing business to the workshop out the back and relaunched The Egg & Dart as a contemporary art gallery that Paul notes “would not be out of place in Sydney or Melbourne”. >

“It’s a magical place that creates its own weather and light — and it’s ever-changing.”

“It came about quite organically,” explains Aaron. “Slowly but surely we started to attract bigger artists. We’re fortunate that this area is quite rich with some great artists who are working within that contemporary art scene.” Aaron is also an artist, whose colourful abstract works explore texture and pattern on a large scale. He attributes his own journey as a painter to helping him forge strong connections with other local artists and foster emerging talent, such as up-and-comer Christopher Zanko. Chris’s work captures the distinctive local architecture and he is one of The Egg & Dart’s biggest success stories — his first exhibition in 2017 sold out before the show opened. Referencing pop art in colour and style, Chris makes wood relief carvings of mid-century bungalows and classic miners’ cottages, and paints them in vibrant acrylics. It’s his way of preserving the houses of his childhood and helping newcomers see their worth. “Over the past 10 years there’s been a real socioeconomic shift in the northern suburbs of Wollongong, and with that, the style of housing that people live in has changed a lot,” he explains. “Smaller houses have been knocked down at an alarming rate… which makes me want to document the houses I’m familiar with and value.” Chris is also a musician and previously ran an art space with a friend above Thirroul’s popular café-slash-surf shop Finbox, one of the many trendy eateries now lining the region’s increasingly busy streets. He says that culturally the Coal Coast has “taken off” in the past five years. “I think people take a lot more pride in it because everyone is part of that process and making [the culture] for each other.” Take the scenic Lawrence Hargrave Drive north from Thirroul and you’ll find another of the Coal Coast’s stars: the Sea Cliff Bridge. A modern engineering marvel, it wraps languidly around the cliff face, offering breathtaking views and the perfect vantage point for whale watching. On its northern side lies Coalcliff, an old mining town that, until the bridge opened in 2005, was often disconnected from its neighbours due to frequent rock falls. Surrounded by trees and cradled by the escarpment, it’s where artist Gabrielle Adamik finds the calm she needs to create. “I’m conscious of being right on the edge of the land, just holding onto the cliffs,” she says. “I’m always considering the contrast between land and sea, and sea and sky.” Gabrielle and her partner Michi moved to the area from Sydney 12 years ago. “I wanted my children to grow up away from the noise and distraction of the city,” she explains. The sculptor, also part of The Egg & Dart family, now finds it hard to leave the peaceful, leafy home she shares with Michi, their daughters 12-year-old Lola and Peggy, 10, and their dog Toshi. Working primarily with glass and ceramic, she’s often at her kiln on a deck overlooking the sea. “I spend quite a bit of time looking at a big chunk of uninterrupted horizon,” Gabrielle says. “I think the vastness of the space seeps into you, and informs the process of making.” No doubt her fellow Coal Coast artists would agree — and those who visit are just as richly rewarded. As Paul Ryan says, “It’s just a special place.” For more information and upcoming exhibitions, visit egganddart.com.au; and follow @paulryan88 on Instagram.