Maharlina Gorospe-Lockie| Purification (2024 winner)

Description

In the stifling summer heat and humidity after the floods, I peek
through trunks, branches and roots. The chaotic appearance of plants
in an estuary belies an efficient water filtering process, a natural
buffer and a nursery for diverse plants and animals. Sadly, this
natural capacity is vulnerable to human activity and extreme weather
conditions.

ARTIST BIO:

Maharlina Gorospe-Lockie’s visual arts and anthropology studies were
followed by a decade long research career in coastal zone management
in the Philippines. She moved to Australia over 20 years ago and lived
in Yeppoon, in Canberra, and currently resides in Cairns where she is
reconnected with the tropics and her art practice reignited by the
fragile beauty of tropical coastal environments. Her acrylic
landscapes are based on memories and impressions from fieldwork,
travel and contemplation.

Maharlina held her first solo show at the Cairns Art Gallery last year
as a recipient of an artist fellowship award supported by the Cairns
RSL Club, followed by another local solo show at Vivo’s Artroom. She
was a finalist in the 2023 Paddington Art Prize. With a focus on
environmental issues, she has participated over the years in several
group shows in Cairns, as well as in Brisbane with the Queensland
Regional Art Awards as a 2021 finalist and, in 2024, as a selected
exhibiting emerging artist.