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Elegy for an Old Argument
Oil on canvas

40 x 120 cm

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"Many people have this romantic idea that painting is a relaxing form of free expression: that artists have a nice cushy job. In my experience, painting is a tiring and frequently exasperating process of problem solving." So says Noosa-based artist Tony Wellington.

"Perhaps it's because I work in a very exacting, hard-edge realist style that I rarely get to relax when I'm painting? I'd love to be one of those artists that just tosses paint around - but I wouldn't be at all happy with the end result! I've always been drawn to detail. I love paintings that demonstrate both a singular vision and also hard-earned technique. Give me Andrew Wyeth over Jackson Pollock any day! Uh-oh, I'll probably get branded a Philistine for saying that!"

Philistine or not, Tony Wellington's paintings are certainly intriguing. There's a gentle whimsy and off-beat surreal quality to his work. "I wish there was more humour in art," he says. Art gets bogged down in so much gravitas. You can gaze at a navel only so long before you realise that it's just a plain old belly-button." In the painting titled "The anomaly of Language" two objects dangle from string: a pair of scissors and a ripe pear. In "Political Expediency" a common "refuge island" traffic sign has been graphitised to become "refugee island". These plays on words reveal Wellington's literary background. In fact he' recently released a research-based book titled Happy? - Exposing the Cultural Myths about Happiness. "I guess I've long been a restless soul," he says. "I always seem to be wearing a number of hats at the same time - which should impress the Cancer Council! But painting is really my first love. It's something I keep returning to, no matter what other projects I get caught up in.”

Tony Wellington paints in a meticulous, hard-edge, super-realist style which often blends humour and whimsy into his subjects. His oil paintings are as varied in subject matter as they are in size, ranging from miniatures to large canvases. Tony also creates super-realist paintings in the difficult medium of watercolour.

Tony's paintings incorporate iconic Australian images. Often they are inspired by puns and wordplay. Frequently he will employ Trompe L'oeil trickery in his work. Industrial landscapes, bucolic rural settings and seascapes all feature. Tony’s passion for Australian fauna has also resulted in some very precise wildlife art.

Tony’s paintings have been exhibited and sold through a wide range of galleries in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, the Hunter Valley, the Sunshine Coast and Cairns. He has won various prizes for his paintings, and his work hangs in homes across the globe.

Tony has performed commission work for many private and corporate clients, as well as picturebook illustration and book jackets for a variety of publishers.

Solo Exhibitions:

• Ardleigh Cleveland Gallery, Hyatt Regency Coolum 2007
•Red Hill Gallery, Brisbane, 2004
• Greenhill Gallery, Adelaide, 2004
• Skygarden, Sydney 2000
• Avoca Art Gallery 1999
• Gosford City Art Centre, 1999
• The Australian Reptile Park, Somersby, 1998
• Galerie Helen Gorey, Melbourne 1997
• David Jones, Elizabeth St, Sydney 1995

Group exhibitions:

• Ardleigh Cleveland Gallery, Hyatt Regency Coolum, 2008/9
• Maree Mizon Gallery, Sydney, 2004
• Vanessa Wood Fine Art, Sydney 2001 (One of 20 . artists invited to exhibit in the A.S.A.P. exhibition which included works by David Boyd, Judy Cassab, Ken Done, Tom Gleghorn, John Olsen, Gary Shead, Robert Dickerson, etc.)
• Calga Springs Sanctuary, Central Coast 2001
• The Sydney Art Gallery, 2000
• Adele’s Gallery of Fine Art, Melbourne, 2000
• Customs Wharf Gallery, Melbourne, 1997
• ASN Gallery, Sydney 1996

His commissioned artwork includes:

• Book covers for Allen & Unwin, Hodder Headline, UQP, Random House, Currency Press.
• Commissioned illustrations for Weldon Owen Publishing.
• Commissioned and licensed artwork for various clients including St George Bank, Metro Products, The Australian Conservation Foundation, Gosford-Edogawa Gardens.
• Numerous privately commissioned paintings.

Tony also released a range of limited edition, printed clocks which sold through shops at The Art Gallery of NSW, Queensland Art Gallery and The Australian National Gallery, as well as through various private galleries.

As well as painting quirky images, these days Tony spends his time working as a professional photographer, film-maker and author. He has recently finished directing and shooting two short documentaries: one on the Cooloola section of the Great Sandy National Park, and one on the history of environmental activism in Noosa.

Tony has releasaed two books of his photography, “Colours of Noosa” and “Colours of the Sunshine Coast”. He has authored “Happy? – Exposing the Cultural Myths About Happiness” and co-authored “Don’t Shoot the Best Boy! – the film crew at work”.

For 17 years Tony Wellington worked as a Director, Scriptwriter and First Assistant Director in the film industry. He also lectured in film craft at Charles Sturt University and The Australian Film TV & Radio School. A feature film which he wrote and directed, “Raw Nerve”, was invited to the London Film Festival, and he was awarded a prize at The New York Film Festival for a short film.

Tony has also been a music journalist and music performer. He has run folk clubs in Sydney and released a CD of his own songs.

In 1976 Tony graduated from Macquarie University with a BA in Media & Communications plus the University Prize.

Tony is a husband, father of three, and is an addicted surfer.

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