Julia Roche

This is Nev and Lesley Clarke.

And what you see behind them was their home of 20 years until the Dunn’s Road Fire ripped through a large part of Adelong and the beautiful Snowy Mountains on January 4th 2020.

While our family starts the clean up at Sharps Creek I wanted to give Nev and Lesley some security for the coming months. This week I will auction off an artwork I painted in early November in response to the fires surrounding Sydney. TOTAL proceeds of this artwork will go directly from the purchaser into Lesley and Nev’s local bank account for them to put towards household goods, rent, clothes, their health or whatever they decide. Alongside the auction, Charles Sturt University Wagga Wagga has kindly donated 10 limited edition prints of the artwork- proceeds of which will also be donated to Nev and Lesley. These prints are priced at $125 each and can be purchased directly. [Details of the artwork + prints are below]

Nev and Lesley, together with their horses have called Adelong home for the majority of their married life. They are renowned in the Adelong community for their giving nature and ability to engage with and teach the younger generations. A stunning example of how valued they are, just last November over 300 people gathered at the Adelong showground for Nev’s 80th birthday!

Nev has a strong reputation as a successful stockman, drover and horse breaker, as well as horse riding mentor to many. It would be an understatement to say he’s endured some hair raising experiences in his time, but when recounting the fires before leaving their home he said

‘…I have been in the mountains coming out on a pack horse on my own, [WITH] a mob of cattle, dingos howling all around me…but nothing as terrifying as what come over the big hill over there. I never seen flames as high…it was something else.’

For Lesley, this experience has made her feel even more connected and grateful for the tight-knit community of Sharps Creek and the broader Adelong district.

Since losing their home and most of their belongings, Lesley has been assisting with the donations and the organisation of food, and delivering of pantry packs and meals to the firefighters and other families doing it tough in the community. Lesley’s ability to look beyond what she has lost and move forward with love and kindness is what makes their story so touching.

AUCTION + ARTWORK DETAILS

If you’ve been eyeing off a work of mine over the years, here is an opportunity to purchase a large interpretive landscape with the full proceeds going towards a beautiful Australian couple who have been affected by these devastating fires. OR if your company or employer is looking for a direct and meaningful contribution then please feel free to share.

BIDDING starts Friday 9am, 24th January at $1000. The auction will run for 6 days. Once the artwork is uploaded bids will be placed bids in Facebook or Instagram comments or private message me with bid if prefer to remain anonymous. I will update ‘latest bid’ across Facebook and Instagram 4 times a day. If the same bid is placed, the 1st person who placed the bid will be accepted.

If you are not on social media please email me with your highest bid and I will get back to you as soon as I can to confirm. Please note email bidding will close at 2pm Thursday 30th January.

Bidding opens Friday 24th January 9am. Bidding closes Thursday 30th January 5pm.
Bids to be placed in comments under the image of the artwork.

Original Artwork - Auction

Salt Of The Earth, 2019, oil, mixed media on canvas, 122 x 153 cm

Valued at $2650 / Starting bid $1000

Limited Edition Prints - SOLD OUT

10 x limited edition | Salt Of The Earth, 2019, inkjet prints, 32 x 29cm [includes white border]

$125 each [+ postage]

Contact me direct to purchase

GO FUND ME - DONATION

Due to strong interest and requests on how else people are able to support Nev + Lesley [in addition to the Art Auction], we have established a Go Found Me page. Follow the link if you wish to donate.

Photographs courtesy and copyright Tayla Martin 2020 ©