Isabelle Devos is a visual artist and Helena Pastor is a writer, they both live in Armidale NSW.
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| Isabelle Devos and Helena Pastor |
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Isabelle Devos, Looking Back, 2009 acrylic on linen 60 x 90 cm |
Isabelle has spent the past fifteen years painting the suburban and rural landscapes of her region, and she exhibits her work in both group and solo shows in Sydney, Canada and across the New England area of NSW. Her work has won art prizes and been selected as finalist in several art prizes in both Australia and Canada. Her work is in the collection of the Art Bank of New Brunswick and her paintings have been commissioned by the University of New England among others. In her paintings there is a sense of disquiet, a seeking to capture the unsettled feeling of being on the verge of recalling an elusive half-remembered dream. There are stories in the landscapes and suburban scenes, and the viewer is asked to consider what stories are within these scenes. Isabelle has always enjoyed working with other artists within the arts community and has collaborated with Arts North West for an annual artist studio tour as well as a sculptural work Putting the Pieces Together with rural and isolated artists with disabilities.
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Isabelle Devos, Wallaroo Lookout, 2014 acrylic on linen 90 x 110 cm |
Helena Pastor was born in Australia, but the rest of her family were born in the Netherlands. Through memoir, fiction and song lyrics, she explores topics close to her heart including women’s issues (especially all stages of motherhood), troubled youth, the aftershocks of war, and growing up in an immigrant family. Helena's writing has attracted Australian Society of Authors’ Mentorships, along with residencies at Varuna Writers’ House, Bundanon Trust, and Booranga and Katharine Susannah Prichard Writers’ Centres. She has completed two postgraduate degrees in Creative Nonfiction writing, and her first book, Wild Boys: A Parent’s Story of Tough Love (UQP, 2015), is an intimate insight into reconnecting disaffected teenagers with their families and communities.
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Helena Pastor, Wild Boys, published 2015 |
For the past five years, Helena has been collaborating with Armidale composer Chris Purcell, creating emotionally engaging songs that illuminate sensitive aspects of human life. Pastor & Purcell are currently recording their songs for an arts project called ‘Stories in Song’ (funded by Arts North West and Regional Arts NSW). In 2019, Helena collaborated with photographer Bernard Alberecht for the Art.Word.Place exhibition at Artstate Tamworth.
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Helena Pastor and Bernard Alberecht, Art Word Place exhibition, Art State 2019 Tamworth |
"... We are two friends – an artist and a writer – who have been living in a drought-stricken landscape, looking forward to a focused time away from family and other responsibilities to meet up for a restorative creative residency at Gunyah. Our new collaboration will be nurtured by spending time together in a house made with love and good intentions, surrounded by water and bushland. We are excited by the possibilities and projects that may emerge between painter and writer – words and thoughts, textures and stories. We hope to explore ideas around family, memories, and the flora and fauna of the beautiful Port Stephens area..."
