It is with great excitement that Alcaston Gallery presents new paintings by Rupert Betheras in his third solo exhibition.

Rupert Betheras’s style is fast, furious and intensely focused. He has a passion for life and art, and this passion and focus emanate from his work.

He had the benefits of fostering his early creative pursuits, which included the art of mark making, and joined his brothers in pursuing street art.

His attentions were to be captured by a burgeoning graffiti art scene in Melbourne during the 1980s and the concept of making marks on surfaces — an action both primal and direct.

He was also very fortunate that his family’s interests lay with the creative arts. His mother, Anne Betheras, is a gifted ceramicist and we are delighted to showcase four of her unique hand-formed clay pieces, together with her son’s paintings.

It is clear that creativity flows through the Betheras family. We are thrilled to see Rupert Betheras powerfully emerge on to the Australian contemporary art scene, and pay tribute to Anne Betheras in the creative process.

This exhibition’s new body of work salutes the development of colour, place and an innate desire to capture the passion and energy through painting.

Old Sydney Road refers to the location of his studio near Bradford in country Victoria. Works in the show were also created in Alice Springs and in coastal hideaways on the Mornington Peninsula, south of Melbourne.

*Based on media release issued by Alcastan Gallery.