At Orange Regional Gallery we recently opened a new exhibition sourced from our permanent collection, Colour: Works from the Collection. The artworks on show were chosen to complement the major exhibition Nike Savvas: Purple Haze.

Gallery Director Brad Hammond and I took the opportunity to select some of our favourite colourful works from the collection. Our starting point was looking at works in the Chroma Collection, a group of 35 paintings gifted to the Gallery by Jim Cobb. Jim Cobb was a paint manufacturer who was fascinated by colour and the effects of paint.

From this collection we selected some stunning paintings by the esteemed First Nations artist Emily Kngwarreye, as well as works by Roy Jackson, Louise Tuckwell and the monumental After the Wet, Elcho Island (2004) by Elisabeth Cummings.

Also in the exhibition are two large works by David Serisier and a new acquisition by senior Martumili artist Bugai Whyoulter, on display at the Gallery for the first time.

All of the artworks in the exhibition are a celebration of colour. Whether in abstract landscapes, geometric forms, or depictions of Country, the intimate gallery space invites you to sit and contemplate the ability of colour to express emotion.

The exhibition will run until August 30, 2026. The Gallery is open daily from 10am to 4pm and entry is always free.