Paul Kathner - 'In Towns & Places'

Wednesday 29 August - Sunday 23 September 2018 

Lay of the Land is inspired by Paul Kathner’s interest in the changing colour of the sky and how the mood of the sky affects the tonal quality of the landscape.

The form of a particular landscape is re-interpreted in tonality, colour and form, with an attention to draftsmanship and the structure of the landscape which often includes long forgotten buildings.

Kathner trained as an artist and scene designer in Sydney where he painted sets and backdrops for the most significant ballets, operas and musicals in Australia, including designs for independent theatre, the John Arden Company and the Elizabethan Opera Company in the early years of his career. In 1963, he became resident designer at St Martin’s Theatre in Melbourne and he also designed for the Melbourne Theatre Company, The Australian Ballet, Adelaide Festival and Australian Opera. From 1976 - 1998, Kathner was a director of Scenic Studios, the leading scenic studio in Australia. Amongst his private commissions have been designs for the Melbourne Theatre Company, wall hangings for the Police Academy, banners for St Andrew’s Church, Brighton, a huge icon screen located in front of the sanctuary in St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne, designing and painting Les Sylphides and re-creating the Sidney Nolan backdrop for The Display for the Australian Ballet. Since 1985, Kathner has also designed staging for the Port Fairy Spring Music Festival.

Since retirement, Kathner has dedicated himself to full time painting: many of his paintings are held in private collections in Sydney and Melbourne.