Opens: Saturday 26 June, 3 - 5pm

To be opened by Prof. Di Yerbury AO, Vice Chancellor, Macquarie University

Rosemary Valadon’s exhibition of new paintings and works on paper is an intriguing foray into the seemingly innocent world of children’s fairy stories. To be opened at Eva Breuer Art Dealer on Saturday 26 June by Professor Di Yerbury AO, Vice Chancellor of Macquarie University, this exhibition explores female relationships and sexual politics in the domestic setting, using the familiar narrative of Cinderella.

Valadon’s canvases set the stage for a feminine coming-of-age story through playful images of independence, affection and seduction. In paintings such as You’d look pretty in pink, a young Cinderella sits in defiance to the encouragement of her fairy godmother. The intimacy of women’s relationships in the domestic sphere is also explored in paintings such as After the ball, where women lounge comfortably in each others' presence, undeterred by the interest of the viewer.

Valadon’s painterly technique is evocative. It reinforces the sensuality in her works, manifested in the warmth of plush furnishings, velvet curtains and the dominant ruby-red colouring. The characters themselves are playful and sly, involved in a game of mystery that represents the duality and complexity of life.

Valadon has won numerous awards, including the Portia Geach Memorial Portrait Prize and the Blake Prize for Religious Art, both in 1991, and has been selected to exhibit in the Archibald, Sulman and Portia Geach Prizes on numerous occasions. She is represented in the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, the Macquarie University Collection, the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Artbank, and many important private collections in Australia and overseas.