Annette Peterson
Artist in Residence 2022
My time as the Cossack Artist in Residence was terrific. It was beyond what I’ve ever experienced. It was a connection with the land, with painting, with me as an artist, and with the people.
A look back at my time as Artist in Residence
My time as the Cossack Artist in Residence was wonderful. It was beyond what I’ve ever experienced. It was a connection with the land, with painting, with me as an artist, and with the people. The City of Karratha was amazing, so keen to ensure I was comfortable. I met the most brilliant people, whether it was at the Cossack Awards night or other times meeting famous Indigenous artists or locals. The people here really make you feel welcome. My highlights were meeting well-known local artist Allery Sandy and Eskimo Joe’s frontman Kav Temperley.
I spent my time at Cossack working on-site or in the studio. It was tourist season, so there were always people to interact with who were curious about my work. There are so many unique places within Cossack that could have stayed longer.
On my days off, I travelled extensively through the area. I travelled to Roebourne, Harding Dam, Wickham, Dampier, Karratha and Point Samson. Every single place is exciting and unique. I loved meeting lots of people everywhere I went. There was such an open sky, and such an open heart in me to take in all the beauty that I’m still processing the residency. It had a truly poignant impact on me.
Having previously lived in Hedland for over ten years, it was so lovely to go back to the Pilbara and enjoy the beautiful July weather and the friendly Pilbara people. It’s a magical season. Just before I had arrived, there had been the most abundant rain season, so all the hills were covered in green. It was not what I expected; rather, it looked like a scene from Ireland or England.
My advice to artists considering the residency…
I thoroughly recommend any artist to enter it. Don’t think it’s not for you because you don’t know what you’re saying no to. It will change your life and open your eyes to the fantastic history deep beneath the mangrove roots in the land of Cossack and what it means to the people. I hope you get to experience it the way I did.
Mangroves, Oil on Wood, 70 x 50 cm was displayed at the Red Earth Arts Precinct alongside the winners of 2022 Cossack Art Awards.
What a wonderful way to celebrate the end of the 2022 Cossack Artist in Residence! Painted in my wonderful Cossack studio. I took images of this same mangrove tree almost everyday. I would like to say we’re pretty connected, but I’m not certain the mangrove cares.
About Annette Peterson
Born in Norway, Peterson is a practice-led oil painter with studio and plein-air approaches to her practice. She utilises photography and painting techniques to facilitate realistic and impressionistic landscape painting and is most influenced by changes in light and atmosphere on everyday suburban street scenes. Her fascination with the suburban driving experience has been aided by the accessibility of smartphones at hand to record the moving image in a car. Peterson aims to capture fleeting and affectual moments, impossible to capture or recall once the destination has been reached. Most recently, Peterson has explored ways of remediating digital and analogue formats and how they are perceived.
In 2019, Peterson graduated from Curtin University with Honours, Grad Certificate, and Masters’s in Visual Art. She won the art Prize for her Master’s Degree and the Head of the School’s recommendation for her Grad Certificate. Since then, she has won numerous awards, participated in many art residencies in Western Australia and the UK, and has had her work across Australia.
Follow Annette on Instagram @annettegracepeterson or visit her website at annettepeterson.com.au