Bayside Trail — Mentone to Beaumaris

Returning to Australia after 30 years abroad I felt like a tourist, alert with fresh eyes and a new appreciation for my childhood spent along the bay. In this series of paintings, I follow the footsteps of Australia's early impressionists along the Bayside Trail - a place they made an outdoor studio and playground in the mid to late 1800s.

The Bayside Art Trail spans 17kms along Port Phillip Bay from Elwood Beach to Beaumaris. The trail celebrates the lives and artwork of Australian artists who painted the Bayside coast. Today, the trail extends much further around the bay. I've taken some license to include St. Kilda. My predecessors included people going about their daily activities providing a snapshot of the fashion and themes of the period. Growing up in the 60's I was influenced by the golden age of TV where the uncommon was found in the common place, i.e., the Munsters, My Favorite Martian, etc. This genre of anachronism stuck with me.

The sausage: painted with watercolor and acrylic on #300gsm fabriano sketch pad paper… thanks Aldi.