Free Foyer Exhibition: Antarctic Reflections

Next date: Monday, 18 August 2025 | 09:00 AM to 01:00 PM

Artwork by Mick Brennan and Vivien Hillocks

What happens when two artists, their sketchbooks and cameras head off for once in a lifetime trip to the frozen continent?

While on board a modern cruise ship it is hard to imagine the hardships of the adventurers and scientists that explored the region. Just over 100 years earlier in 1820, Bellingshausen crossed the Antarctic Circle; the following day he became the first person to set foot on Antarctica and now here we were following in their footsteps. 

Mick and Viv's responses to this awe-inspiring landscape form the backdrop for the exhibition; yet capturing the experience is complex. Taking pictures is easy, drawing the snow covered mountains that tumble into the sea is easy, as is sketching wildlife, but distilling the essence of the place is much more challenging. 

Rough seas, bitter cold, howling winds, serene stillness, lots of colour then none - and always the ever changing ice. These are the memories that stick vividly in our heads. Our works in the exhibition are expressions of those memories through a variety of media. 

Image: Mick Brennan 'Heading South', 2024, Acrylic on Canvas.

Artist statement - Vivien Hillocks

Onto the continent

These pieces try to capture the scale and majesty of the Antarctic continent with the Hurtigruten cruise boat and smaller Zodiac excursion vessels for scale. 

Into the ice

Seeing ice and snow in all its varied colours, sizes and shapes, informs this set of works. The greatest challenge was to capture the range of blues both in the ice structures and the surrounding waters. 

Under the microscope

The expedition ship was equipped to sample the Antarctic waters and examine it under the microscope. Once magnified, a whole new world is revealed. A variety of plankton, kelp and feather fragments, diatoms and organic debris show surprising details and colour variation. 

While these works are not from specific samples, they try to capture the essence of this rarely seen facet of Antarctic life. 

When

Location

Moncrieff Entertainment Centre, 177 Bourbong St, Bundaberg Central, 4670, View Map