‘Sense of place’ the key for Williams

It’s said you can’t go home again – but no-one said anything about not treating it as the subject for an exhibition.

Inner west artist Tony Williams says he regards life as a constant journey of development and exploration – but on the basis of ‘On the Way Between Places’, he certainly retains a special place in his heart for the place he calls home.

Aside from a brief interlude in the Blue Mountains, Williams has lived most of his life in the inner west – for the past decade in Newtown, and prior to that in Chippendale. “I love living here, despite the gentrification,” he said. “If I’m living in Sydney, Newtown is where I want to live. I just love the vibrancy of the inner west, the crowdedness and the variety of people who live here, variety of buildings. It’s a very rich cultural landscape for Australia – I’ve done a fair bit of travelling, but to me the inner west is a really strong, vibrant place in Sydney. And what I feel for my area is also including, I think, places like Leichhardt and Balmain.”

Tony, who grew up in the wild Colo region, has spent his working life as a teacher, and then psychologist. He currently retains a space at Lennox Street Studios, and says working in conjunction with other artists is essential to him.

“I see life as a journey from birth to death, growing, changing, developing, learning. We are all travellers on the way between places, and my work is an expression of a physical, emotional, and spiritual experience of, and attachment to, place.”

‘On the Way Between Places’ is currently on exhibition at the Chrissie Cotter Gallery in Pidcock Street, Camperdown, until May 30. Open between 11 and 4pm.