YOORUN MAGIC: ROCK, RAINBOW AND THE SILVER RIVER

Sydney Photographer Michael Gormly spent over five years shooting what he calls “secret landscapes” – spots that were known to the Aboriginal Yoorun people who once lived near the Turon River near Sofala, NSW.

Sofala, a tiny one-pub town, was part of Australia’s first famed gold rush when ten thousand people lived there.

It has also been a haven for various artists, with dramatic structures of bedrock rising out of deep waterholes and the creation of striking images of fish, animals and ripple patterns appearing clearly in Indigenous tree carvings – probably the only surviving artworks of the original inhabitants.

Gormly’s images use the rich palette of natural resources and bring out their surreal qualities in what he calls “a new dreaming”. They connect with not only the land but also the mineralised textures of selected work from 35 leading wood-fired ceramicists on show at Kerrie Lowe Gallery in Newtown. (LL)

Jun 21-Jul 9, Kerrie Lowe Gallery, 49 King St, Newtown, Free, (02) 9550 4433, kerrielowe.com