Inside/Out: Maide and Chris Welch exhibition to open 5 March

Art enthusiasts are invited to enjoy an exciting local exhibition presented by Hornsby Shire Council, with the winner of the 2022 Wallarobba Outstanding Local Artist Award set to unveil an impressive collection of her works next month at Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre, Hornsby.

Maide Welch won the 2022 Wallarobba Outstanding Local Artist Award and received a fully supported exhibition, along with prize money for her winning painting, Sweet Temptation.

Welch’s much-anticipated exhibition, in partnership with her husband Chris, is titled ‘Inside/Out’ and will showcase 70 works including paintings, drawings, etchings, prints and ceramics, produced over a lifetime of making art together.

The Wallarobba Outstanding Local Artist Award was delivered through the 2022 Hornsby Art Prize and was awarded to the artist that produced the most outstanding work, in any category, and who was a resident of the Hornsby Shire. The award was designed to celebrate and support highly talented local artists, whilst sharing the locally developed bodies of work   with the community.

Hornsby Shire Mayor Philip Ruddock encouraged residents to turn out in strong numbers at this impressive upcoming art event, in support of our local artistic talent.

“Council is pleased to continue its support of the arts and creativity in our local area. This is another great opportunity for local art lovers to view exceptional artworks up-close in Hornsby Shire,” Mayor Ruddock said.

Maide Welch works predominantly in her studio producing beautiful still life works, while Chris works outdoors in the local environment, completing his intricate charcoal drawings ‘plein air’.

Maide is a well-established artist and has been painting for decades, attending an art school in New York in the 1980s and working in London before undertaking a Fine Arts degree at Curtin University.

Her work has been included in exhibitions in Sydney, New York, and London; most recently in the Collabor8 Women’s Prize at Ellipsis Gallery in Woolloomooloo in November 2023. Her art is held in various private collections in Australia and internationally.

Hailing from the UK, Chris has worked in animation, underground comics, experiential printing, and illustration in his home country before moving to Sydney where he joined a ‘plein air’ drawing group around the Hawkesbury River and Brooklyn area.

Chris’s work has been included in exhibitions in Australia and internationally and he was a finalist in the Plein Air Prize in Parliament House, Sydney.

Maide Welch explained what the opportunity to exhibit at the Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre meant to her.

“The Hornsby Art Prize is the highlight of the year for local artists and many other artists from outside the Shire. The finalist's exhibition has a very high standard of work, and I was honoured to receive the Wallarobba Outstanding Local Artist Award at the Hornsby Art Prize in 2022 for my painting Sweet Temptation.

“I am also very grateful for the opportunity to be supported by Council to exhibit my body of work alongside Chris Welch at Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre in March. I look forward to meeting fellow artists and supporters of the arts in the coming months,” said Maide.

The exhibition will run from 5-17 March at Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre, 25 Edgeworth David Avenue, Hornsby. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am – 4pm. Free entry.

For more information on the ‘Inside/Out’ exhibition, visit hornsby.nsw.gov.au/arts