A debut solo exhibition by resident artist Anne Cartwright will bring familiar landscapes, waterways and old buildings from across the North East to the walls of Art Gallery on Ovens.

‘Local Landscapes and Waterways’ will be on show from 6 to 17 August, featuring about 20 works from a larger collection of paintings inspired by scenes around Wangaratta, Eldorado, Kialla, Shepparton and the country where Anne grew up near Rosewhite.

For Anne, the exhibition marks a major milestone in an artistic journey that began only two years ago, after she stepped away from a 52-year career in business management, finance and administration.

“When you start to know that it’s time to stop doing that, you get that feeling of because your life has been so full on, what am I going to do?” she said.

“I couldn’t just sit at home and do nothing.”

Art had been part of Anne’s life as a school student, but it was set aside as work and life took over.

Retirement gave her the chance to return to that early interest and find a new sense of purpose through painting.

“You have to keep your mind and body active,” she said.

“You’ve got to have a purpose, but it’s got to be meaningful too.

"Faced with retirement and the best years of my life already past, it was a question of how I was going to spend my days in a productive and meaningful manner."

After a friend suggested she try a lesson, Anne began learning with Kialla artist Raymond Hill in February 2024, and was quickly drawn into the world of oils, plein air painting and local landscapes.

She said Mr Hill had been a mentor and coach, helping her develop her understanding of colour, structure and composition.

Most of the works in the exhibition have been painted outdoors, with Anne setting up her easel on site before later completing each piece in the studio.

“I just get in the car and I drive,” she said.

“I might make two or three stops at different things and think, that’d make a really nice painting.”

Once she settles on a scene, Anne sketches the view, lays down a wash and blocks in the main colours.

Because the light changes so quickly outdoors, she takes photographs every hour to help guide the finishing process once the painting returns home.

Each work can take about 20 hours to complete, although Anne said it could be difficult to decide when a painting was truly finished.

“I don’t think they’re ever really finished,” she said.

“I never really think they’re finished until they’re not mine anymore.”

The exhibition will include recognisable local scenes, including paintings from around Eldorado’s first cut and the Goulburn River near Kialla.

Anne said she was drawn to landscapes, waterways, old buildings, huts and homes with unique features.

“I love to bring somebody else’s home to life," she said.

Growing up at Rosewhite, near Myrtleford, also shaped her connection to the region’s landscapes.

She said the mountains around Mount Buffalo, Mount Hotham and Falls Creek were part of her childhood, and she enjoyed returning to paint old shacks and buildings she had remembered for years.

Anne joined Art Gallery on Ovens as a resident artist in May and said her first solo exhibition felt like an important step.

“It’s an amazing goal from the start,” she said.

"My work reflects passion and soul, and I am eager to share it with art lovers and others who appreciate the beauty of our local landscape."

She hopes people will recognise places they know in the works and take the chance to share their feedback.

“I’d just love people to come and have a look, see what they think,” she said.

‘Local Landscapes and Waterways’ will be on show at Art Gallery on Ovens, Shop 4, 103 Murphy Street, Wangaratta, from August 6 to 17.

The gallery is open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 10am to 4pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm.