LEFT to RIGHT:  Imants TILLERS  
'Diaspora' 1992 oilstick, gouache, synthetic polymer paint Collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa | 
'Izkliede' 1994  gouache, synthetic polymer paint From the Gene and Brian Sherman Collection | 
'Farewell to reason' 1996  oil and oil stick, synthetic polymer paint on prepared canvas boards Collection of the National Gallery of Australia
 

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Into the new millennium when nature prevails

Late in 1996 Imants Tillers moved with his family from Sydney to Cooma in regional New South Wales. In the ensuing works he began to focus more intently on the significance of locality and natural phenomena. While continuing to incorporate multiple references in his works, Tillers also engaged with different ways of responding to the environment. On the one hand he recognised that wherever we are in the world we bring aspects of our past with us. On the other, he acknowledged that we are in turn affected by place: by tangible experiences of topography and seasonal changes, and by different cultural perspectives.

In the large paintings Monaro 1998 and Terra incognita 2005 the structure of the compositions has opened out to reflect the vastness of the terrain. In Monaro Tillers encompasses a feeling for the cool, clear light of the High Country while in Terra incognita he acknowledges the rich diversity of indigenous communities and language groups across Australia prior to colonisation. Like the many smaller works in the Nature speaks series 1998 – 2006, these are not literal depictions of landscape but rather evocations of place through layered images and text references.

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