Lucy O’Doherty


AVAILABLE WORKS

China Heights Gallery presents 'The Drifting Place', the latest solo exhibition by Lucy O'Doherty, opening Friday 9th of May. Featuring twenty oil paintings and soft pastel drawings, this collection explores the transient beauty of our external and internal worlds, weaving together motifs of movement, stillness, and the quiet resonance of memory.

O’Doherty’s work captures ephemeral elements that embody the essence of drift—glacial icebergs, ferries tracing harbour waves, a solitary car navigating rain-slicked roads, and the moon’s silent traverse across the cosmos. These subjects act as portals to a meditative state, where the boundaries between observation and imagination blur. Through hazy, blended strokes and a muted yet luminous palette, her pieces evoke the sensation of wandering through a daydream, inviting viewers to linger in moments of introspection.

Central to the exhibition is the concept of the “drifting place”—a mental landscape where thoughts and memories meander freely, untethered from time. Windows framing glittering seas, homes glimpsed during aimless walks, and surreal, imagined interiors converge to create an immersive experience of inner quiet. O’Doherty’s technique mirrors this fluidity, with soft edges and layered textures guiding the eye as if through fog or shifting tides.

“I want the exhibition itself to become a space where the mind can roam,” says O’Doherty. “It’s about finding stillness within motion, letting the viewer’s gaze and thoughts wander as freely as the subjects themselves.”

The Drifting Place invites audiences to step into a realm of tranquil contemplation, where art and environment merge into a shared sensory journey.

Lucy O’Doherty is a Sydney-based artist celebrated for her evocative explorations of place and memory, expressed through works imbued with atmospheric depth and poetic subtlety. A recipient of the prestigious Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship, she has been a finalist for the Wynne Prize, Doug Moran National Portrait Prize, Ravenswood Women’s Art Prize, and Mosman Art Prize, and earned a high commendation in the Pro Hart Outback Prize. Her practice, represented by China Heights Gallery, has garnered national and international acclaim, with features in publications such as Artist Profile, the Art Gallery of NSW’s Look, and Grass Fires Magazine. The Drifting Place—her fifth solo exhibition with China Heights.