In the Frame & On the Stage: A Talking ArtZ Showcase

This episode of Talking ArtZ unfolds across three engaging segments, offering a rich cross-section of visual arts, major performing arts programming, and local theatre initiatives from across the Blue Mountains and Western Sydney.

The program begins with Jenny Ward’s insightful segment, In the Frame. Known for her thoughtful and informed perspective, Jenny brings listeners into the world of visual arts, reflecting on exhibitions, artistic practice, and the ideas shaping contemporary work. Her commentary provides both context and inspiration, inviting audiences to look more closely and engage more deeply with the art around them.

In the second segment, The Professor is joined by Peta Downes from the Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre in Penrith. This conversation highlights an exciting and diverse lineup of upcoming events at “The Joan,” reinforcing its role as a major cultural hub in the region. A key focus is the Sydney Comedy Festival’s presence at the venue, featuring a dynamic mix of established comedians and emerging voices, alongside inventive and genre-blending performances. Beyond comedy, Peta outlines a broad program that includes musical tributes, classical reinterpretations, contemporary musical theatre, and community-focused events—demonstrating the breadth of experiences on offer for audiences of all tastes.

The final segment brings the focus back to the Blue Mountains, with The Professor speaking to Kellie Mar from the Blue Mountains Theatre and Community Hub in Springwood. This conversation explores the venue’s vital role in the local arts ecosystem, from hosting touring productions to supporting community engagement and creative development. Kellie shares insights into upcoming performances and the theatre’s ongoing commitment to delivering high-quality, accessible arts experiences for the region.

Together, these three segments create a vibrant snapshot of a thriving arts landscape—linking galleries, major performance venues, and community spaces. Whether your interests lie in visual art, live performance, or local cultural life, this episode of Talking ArtZ offers an informative and inspiring guide to what’s happening across the region.

TALKING ARTZ PODCAST
Le Petit Journal: Six Artists, One Château, and a Reunion in Lithgow
Tne podcast of this week’s episode of Talking ArtZ heads west to Gang Gang Gallery for a lively and heartfelt conversation with the six artists behind Le Petit Journal—a unique exhibition born from friendship, travel, and shared creative experience.

Fresh from the success of Hands on Clay, The Professor catches up with the artists just as they arrive, quite literally mid-reunion—champagne in hand and stories already flowing. The exhibition has been years in the making, bringing together a group of artists who first met during a residency in France at Atelier Artist in Residence. What began as a leap of faith—unsure at first whether the residency was even real—quickly became something far more meaningful, as the group bonded almost instantly, talking non-stop from their first meeting in Le Mans and throughout their time together at the château.

Now reunited in Lithgow, the artists—Livonne Larkins, Tanya Small, Monica Foulk, Cecile Cummings, Beth Cunningham, and Kate Neal—share not only their work, but the stories behind it. Their practices span an impressive range: still life oils, figurative painting, expressive acrylics, delicate botanical watercolours, conceptual photography, and intricately constructed paper assemblage. Despite these differences, a shared “language of art” underpins their connection, creating a cohesive and deeply engaging exhibition.

The title Le Petit Journal—inspired by illustrated French newspapers discovered during their residency—translates loosely as “the little diary,” and perfectly captures the spirit of the show. Each piece acts as a fragment of memory: moments from the château, friendships formed over wine and conversation, and the quiet inspiration found in working side by side. While each artist maintained their own distinct practice, the environment fostered a strong sense of support, encouragement, and creative exchange—what one artist describes as a “unique synergy” deliberately shaped by the residency’s curator.

Listeners are given a behind-the-scenes glimpse into this creative process, from wandering the château for inspiration to the importance of stepping away from your own work and absorbing the energy of others. There’s humour too—stories of baguettes, wine, and artistic distraction—balanced with genuine reflections on risk, travel, and the value of stepping outside one’s comfort zone.

More than just an exhibition, Le Petit Journal is a reunion—“hug city,” as the artists affectionately call it. Despite the distances between them, the group has maintained strong connections, and this gathering marks not just a culmination, but the beginning of future collaborations and adventures.

With an artist talk scheduled for Sunday and many of the artists present throughout the opening weekend (before some head off on their next international journeys), visitors are invited not only to view the work, but to engage directly with the stories behind it—layers of meaning that connect the pieces in subtle and surprising ways.

The episode closes on a fitting note, with the artists selecting The Swan from The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns—a graceful and reflective piece that echoes the elegance, intimacy, and shared experience at the heart of Le Petit Journal.

A warm, engaging, and often humorous episode, this is a celebration of art, friendship, and the enduring power of creative connection.
Le Petit Journal
April 23 - May 10
Gang Gang Gallery, Lithgow

Talking ArtZ –BIG Arts Night on Radio Blue Mountains!

Talking ArtZ – March 26 'HANDS ON CLAY'

In this episode of Talking ArtZ, availabe here as a podcast the Professor sits down with ceramic artist Veronique Sellies, whose beautifully crafted works draw on Moroccan traditions, Mediterranean colours, and the unpredictable magic of saggar firing.

Now based in Bullaburra, French born Veronique Sellies is currently exhibiting in the Hands on Clay exhibition at Gang Gang Gallery in Lithgow, and will also be taking part in the upcoming Blue Mountains Pottery Fair, one of the region’s major gatherings of ceramic artists.

In this conversation she talks about her journey with clay, the cultural influences that shape her work, and the creative processes behind her striking ceramic forms.

Aftre that he then talks to Jude Keogh, also exhibiting at 'Hands on Clay'. The Professor also talks to her about how she graduated with an Associate Diploma of Art (Ceramics) from Orange TAFE in 1995 and  is known for her striking salt-glazed wood-fired ceramics, drawn to the dramatic colours created by flame and wood ash in the kiln.

Working with both wood and gas firing, she often incorporates local materials—including plant ash, rocks and stones—to create unique earthy glazes that reflect the landscape around her.

Listen toto Talking ArtZ on this podcast and tune in every Thursday at 6pmm on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1FM, or stream online at rbm.org.au.

#TalkingArtZ #RadioBlueMountains #BlueMountainsArts #Ceramics #BlueMountainsArtists

Talking ArtZ – Podcast | March 12 Episode

In this episode of Talking ArtZ on Radio Blue Mountains, host Robyn Catchlove speaks with Barbara Lepani about the 2026 Regenesis Competition, an arts initiative inviting the community to creatively explore our relationship with the natural world.

Barbara explains the philosophy behind the Enlivenment Network and its focus on “enlivenment” — reconnecting with nature, creativity, and our sense of belonging within the living world. The theme for this year’s competition, “Our Kinship with the Natural World,” invites creative responses from across the Blue Mountains and Lithgow region.

The competition welcomes entries in poetry, short stories, song lyrics with music, visual arts, and short video, with opportunities for both youth and adult participants. Barbara describes the project as a community invitation rather than a search for professional artists — encouraging people of all backgrounds to express their relationship with nature through their chosen creative form.

Shortlisted entries will be published in a Regenesis anthology, with prizes awarded in each category and a celebratory launch event later in the year.

Following the interview, the program continues with the regular Talking ArtZ roundup of arts and cultural events happening across the Blue Mountains.

🎧 Listen to the full episode and learn how you can participate in this unique creative celebration of nature and community.

Talking ArtZ – In The Frame & The Art of Laughter

This week’s Talking ArtZ brings together two thoughtful and uplifting segments exploring creativity, community, and wellbeing in the Blue Mountains.

In “In The Frame,” Jenny Waed presents a series of conversations with local artists and creatives, offering insight into their work, exhibitions, and the ideas shaping the region’s vibrant cultural landscape.

The second segment features a special replay from Robyn Catchlove’s Catch the Loverly, with writer, poet and yoga practitioner Andris Heks. In this engaging discussion, Andris reflects on the power of laughter as a form of healing, drawing inspiration from nature and the iconic Australian kookaburra.

Blending arts coverage with philosophical reflection, this episode is both grounded in local creative practice and open to bigger ideas about connection, culture, and wellbeing.

Talking ArtZ Podcast | Art, Memory & Community

In this deeply reflective episode of Talking ArtZ on Radio Blue Mountains, we explore the life, legacy, and lasting impact of John Ellison—a much-loved Blue Mountains artist whose work continues to resonate across the community.

Educator and writer Paddy Cavanagh shares personal insights into The People’s Artist: A John Ellison Retrospective, offering a moving perspective shaped by friendship, loss, and the powerful community response to John’s passing.

Artist Zenta Zebergs joins us to discuss Love and Art – Her Story, a deeply personal retrospective of her mother Anita Rezevska. Spanning nearly 60 years of creative work, the exhibition explores identity, migration, and artistic evolution—from war-torn Europe to Australia—while also weaving in the story of Zenta’s father, sculptor Antony Symons. It’s a moving story of art as both inheritance and lifelong calling.

And we also hear from Liz DeCosta, a friend of John and Lyn's, currently directing and acting in 'Orchards in the Moonlight' at the Wentworth falls School of the Arts; who speaks to the curatorial vision behind the Ellison retrospective—an exhibition built not from a single collection, but from the lived connections between an artist and his community. Together, these works form a vibrant, emotional portrait of both John and the place he loved.

From Winter Magic memories to deeply personal artistic journeys, this episode captures the heart of a creative community coming together.

Together, these conversations form an intimate portrait of an artist whose vision—especially his iconic “Big Kat”—remains woven into the cultural fabric of Katoomba and the wider Blue Mountains.

A thoughtful and heartfelt episode about art, place, and the enduring power of community.

Talking ArtZ | Wyn Jones – Cradle of Conservation

In this episode of Talking ArtZ, The Professor sits down with Wyn Jones — ecologist, artist, poet and lifelong advocate for the Blue Mountains — to explore the powerful intersection of art, conservation and community.

With his exhibition Cradle of Conservation – Hands on Heritage currently showing at Gang Gang Gallery in Lithgow, Wyn reflects on the origins of Australia’s conservation movement, from the historic saving of Blue Gum Forest in 1932 to the World Heritage–listed landscapes we know today.

The conversation moves across decades of lived experience — childhood encounters with the bush, a vast archive of photography, poetry shaped by place, and the belief that art can awaken the senses in ways science alone sometimes cannot. Wyn shares how participatory works, including hand-printed conservation banners and children’s painted stones, carry forward a message of shared responsibility and intergenerational care for country.

This is a thoughtful, inspiring discussion about memory, activism, creativity and the deep sensory connection we have to the natural world — and how stepping outside, even briefly, can restore perspective.

The episode closes with Wyn’s musical selection: Dave Brubeck’s Strange Meadowlark.

Talking ArtZ – Lookout, Lookout: New Theatre, Film and Landscape from the Blue Mountains

Talking ArtZ – Looking Ahead to 2026 at The Joan