Goin’ Out West

Whenever an artist in love with painting arrives in a new landscape there’s invariably a potent mixture of trepidation and enthusiasm. Tomkins arrived at Wilcannia in far western NSW like a jack-in-the-box ready and raring to go and on his arrival in the searing heat by the Darling/Baakariver he set to immediately laying down his first observations with gusto.

As with all of his work to date there’s a haptic and keenly seen sensibility which employs a nuanced use of perspective all his own, with a strong sense of composition. I see the use of bold forms, often as defined as a jigsaw puzzle, and his use of scumbled opalescent colour to wrest a dazzling image of charm and courage.

The first works Tomkins made in the outback and subsequent studio works are his very own eye cast with a tremendous and infectious energy but there’s nothing bombastic about these works.

They’re tender, felt and without sentimental indulgence but at once they have a certain charm that we enjoy in the works of previous generations like Walter Withers or Albert Pinkham Ryder, through the kaleidoscope of a contemporary painter who cares deeply about his craft and the world around him.

-Luke Scibberras 2024