Lucy Culliton Bibbenluke, spring

Lucy Culliton, a regular Archibald, Wynne and Sulman finalist, lives at Bibbenluke on Ngarigo Country in the Snowy Monaro region of NSW. The subjects of her paintings are never far from her home.

In this painting we encounter the splendour of her high-country garden in late spring, glimpsing the contrasting textures of the Monaro beyond a dense wall of blooms and fresh foliage.

The garden is a recurring theme for Culliton, as she savours its seasonal changes and the rewards of her nurturing. She says: ‘After much appreciated moisture, the garden showed her appreciation by delivering the best flower display I have seen in my 15 years living at Bibbenluke. I spent the spring making paintings of my garden. This painting was made larger in the studio from a plein air study I made on a cold November day.’