Saturday 18 June 2022   10:00am

In Motherhood, artist Sheree Dohnt has created small-scale watercolour portraits of mothers from all over Australia, depicting the relationships of mother and child, and the joys, tensions, sadness and loss within those lifetimes of experience.

Inspired by her own experiences as a mother of a four-year-old daughter, Dohnt sought out mothers from a variety of backgrounds, ages and life experiences to share their stories. The process of creating the work was just as important to the artist as the final product; Dohnt met with each mother and recorded their conversations as each were asked a set of questions. These conversations informed the final composition and set the tone for the exhibition.

Motherhood aims to raise awareness of the realities of birth, child-rearing and the gamut of emotions that encapsulate her every-day. By bringing these experiences to a visual arts context, Dohnt raises the importance of representing the mothers’ experience, from the perspective of a female artist.

Motherhood is courage.

Artist Bio:

Sheree Dohnt (b. 1990), is an emerging artist residing in Dalyellup, Western Australia. Originally from Wollongong New South Wales, Dohnt graduated from the University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Arts). Through painting and drawing, predominantly in watercolour and ink, the artist explores themes of identity and parenthood. Colour and line are crucial devices that Dohnt employs to evoke emotional responses to the stories her portraits tell. In 2020, Dohnt was an exhibiting finalist in the South Western Times Art 2020 at Bunbury Regional Art Gallery, and the Winner of the South West Virtual Arts Spectacular 2D Artwork Category. In 2021, Dohnt was awarded the 2021 Alcoa Harvey Art prize for her work titled ‘Motherhood’ . Dohnt is a member of the Watercolour Society of Western Australia as well as the organizer of a monthly art event, Bunbury Portrait Club.

 Opening Event

The Bunbury Regional Gallery will host an opening brunch on Sunday 19th June from 10am.  For more information and to register click here.

Image credit: Sheree Dohnt, Skin to Skin, 2022, Watercolour on Paper, 15cm x 20cm