Julie Hutchings
Montville Art Gallery’s feature artist for the month of April is Julie Hutchings. Grafton has been Julie’s home since her birth
in 1959. Her ambition on leaving school was to become a jockey but she wasn’t small enough. Instead, she married John Hutchings, a top jockey in the Northern Rivers district until he retired in the late 1990s.
Julie studied commercial art part-time whilst raising two children and working as her husband’s secretary, agent and personal assistant.
“In 1993, I was invited to join the board of directors of the Clarence River Jockey Club,” Julie told us. “This is an honour rarely afforded to women. It has been a major focus of my life for the last fourteen years. It keeps me very busy. I am currently heavily involved with the Winter Racing Carnival. I’ve spent most of my life around horses and I really enjoy painting them. Needless to say I know my subjects well.”
“Many artists find accurately capturing a horse in motion extremely difficult, but not so Julie,” said gallery manager, Lisa Powell. “Her expressionistic paintings not only portray the horse’s movement but also capture the strength of both horse and jockey.”
Several years ago, Julie was instrumental in establishing a life drawing group which still meets regularly, once a week in Grafton.
“We have noticed astute collectors are showing an increasing interest in Julie’s nude studies – both male and female,” Lisa told us. “With their soft colours and textures her tasteful paintings fit comfortably into any décor. What’s more, they are reasonably priced and represent great value for money.”
Open daily from 10 to 5, Montville Art Gallery is located at 138 Main Street, Montville opposite the Village Green.
You may also like to visit the Gallery’s website at www.montvilleartgallery.com.au where you can view Julie’s exhibition paintings from April 1.
Leave a Reply