Born in Brisbane in 1957, Ron McBurnie is one of Queensland’s most prolific printmakers. He studied with the Queensland College of the Arts and James Cook University in Townsville. Throughout his practice, McBurnie frequently draws upon classical themes, reimagining works of century-old pastoral Romanticism to tell distinctly contemporary stories. Through these reinterpretations, he celebrates the quiet remarkability of everyday people and landscapes in North Queensland, and Australia more broadly.

McBurnie’s intriguing self-portrait, ‘Headland’, is a visceral response to the face, or head, he sees in the mirror everyday. With a title that knowingly evokes geographic formations, McBurnie presents his face as a unique landscape, with his distinctive, expressive mark-making intimately maps the lines, scars and imperfections that speak to a lifetime of experience. Rather than concealing these features, McBurnie embraces them, transforming the familiar into a richly textured terrain of memory and identity. This work serves as both a sensitive reminder to the authenticity of everyday life and is a profound comment on the remarkable ways we observe ourselves and others.

McBurnie has exhibited in a range of solo and group shows across Australia and is represented in private and and public collections nationally, including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and the Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art. McBurnie’s reflective image is certainly a conversation starter, and a remarkable find for lovers of portraiture, landscape and contemporary Australian printmaking.

Ron MCBURNIE (1957 - )
'Headland' 2012
etching and drypoint on paper
Edition of 23
Image Size: 33 x 26 cm
Dimensions: 61 x 50 cm
Signed: Edition, title, signed 'R McBurnie', dated underneath image.

Comes with Letter of Provenance

Exhibitions: Another impression was featured in Corporeal at Geelong Art Gallery in 2013. This exhibition and associated print exchange was curated by Rona Green.

Condition: Very Good: Describes a work of art's image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear to paper or frame. There are no tears to paper margin or disruption to the paint surface.

(c) The Artist or Assignee