Driftwood Tourism
2024
Made in October 2024 and exhibited at Onwards Gallery studio members group exhibition Inside Outside.
Waikiki Beach, Maitland Bay Beach and Hawaii also exhibited in Out For Summer (2024) at Onwards Gallery.

Artist Statement
As a regular beach comber, Holly Leonardson's studio accommodates a steady influx of natural and unnatural objects gathered from local Newcastle beaches and coastlines further afield. Using driftwood that had been previously milled for construction purposes as the base for these small sculptures, Holly has combined these found forms with natural wood additions, crushed shell, sand and offcuts from screen printing tests on wood board. All surfaces have been altered with layers of acrylic paint and abstracted references to the beach environment. One element that has been carried across all but one of these works is the inclusion of a tourist keyring, all of which were found as part of a single collection in a tip shop. The desire to collect and bring home objects as mementos of our travels is something many of us indulge in, and one Holly wishes to acknowledge in these works.

Waikiki Beach, 2024, Acrylic, Japanese acrylic gouache, driftwood, found keyring, steel nail, enamel, H 15 x W 9 x D 7.5cm

Maitland Bay Beach, 2024, Acrylic, Japanese acrylic gouache, screenprint on board, driftwood, found object, sand, crushed shell, steel nails, enamel, H 14 x W 9.5 x D 5cm

Hawaii, 2024, Acrylic, Japanese acrylic gouache, screenprint on board, driftwood, found keyring, sand, steel nail, enamel, H 15 x W 17 x D 6.5cm

Melaka, 2024, Acrylic, Japanese acrylic gouache, driftwood, found keyring, shell, air dry clay, sand, steel nail, enamel,

Phuket, 2024, Acrylic, Japanese acrylic gouache, driftwood, found keyring, sand, steel nail, enamel, H 24 x W 20 x D 7cm