AI – Artist’s Impressions: Oscar Garcia

This selection of artworks can be viewed as a study of subjects and interests drawn from the local Inner West areas of Burwood, Strathfield, and their surrounds—places Oscar has called home for decades. Spanning over ten years, these works draw inspiration from a range of experiences and settings: suburban life, rapid urban development, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the often-subtle social undercurrents that shape our communities.

While not conceived as a formal series, and not intended as literal representations, these are anecdotal paintings—personal observations rendered and narratively adapted to reflect a shared, relatable terrain. Each piece is shaped by the artist’s perspective but also serves as an open landscape for the viewer’s own interpretation.

EXHIBITION:
Strathfield Library & Innovation Hub
3 October - 30 November 2025

OFFICIAL OPENING:
Thursday 2 October 2025

RSVP: 
Monday 22 September 2025
Bookings are required for the opening for catering purposes.
exhibitions@strathfield.nsw.gov.au

GUEST SPEAKER:
Patrick Cremin Arts & Culture Specialist Bayside Council

Media release(PDF, 142KB)

Q&A with Oscar Garcia(PDF, 764KB)

Exhibition Overview(PDF, 109KB)

Watch now: Exhibition tour of AI - Artist's Impressions: Oscar Garcia

Image: Oscar Garcia, Suburban Nostalgia 2024 oil on polyester

Thinking in Pictures: Chalmers Road School

Chalmers Road School caters for students aged 4-18 with moderate or severe intellectual disabilities. In this context making art is a very sensory process and art lessons are structured in a way that enable all students to access and complete a process. This often requires modifying materials and finding inventive ways to engage students and these processes in themselves are as interesting as the final product.

Artist in Residence, Howard Mathew has documented the processes and tools students used to create these artworks. This video is exhibited alongside finished works of art to offer the viewer an insight into how students’ access and make art. The aim of exhibiting process alongside product is to not only share how complex facilitation in this context is but importantly to foreground that children with disabilities are capable of unique and striking works of art. 

EXHIBITION:
Strathfield Library & Innovation Hub
5 December – 25 January 2026

OFFICIAL OPENING
Wednesday 3rd December 2025, 12 noon

GUEST SPEAKER
Richard Manchee, Principal, and Howard Mathew, Artist in Residence, Chalmers Road School

RSVP:
Monday 24 November 2025
Bookings are required for the opening for catering purposes.
exhibitions@strathfield.nsw.gov.au

Q&A: Chalmers-Rd-School-Q-A-Ironbark-Gallery-Exhibition.pdf(PDF, 544KB)

Image: Students at Chalmers Road School, Sensory Surfaces (detail), plasticine print on colour paper, 2025.

Please email exhibitions@strathfield.nsw.gov.au for more information.

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 Applications are now open to exhibit in the Ironbark Gallery in 2026.

 APPLICATIONS CLOSE 1 DECEMBER 2025

All applicants are evaluated by a selection committee and based on the written application and supporting material provided.

Those considering applying are encouraged to refer to past exhibiting artist, Marina Mavritsky’s application as an example of a succinct and considered application(PDF, 2MB). 

All applicants should read the Community Art Space Program Scope and Conditions.pdf (PDF, 197KB)(PDF, 223KB)

View the Ironbark Gallery floor plan here(PDF, 606KB)

Questions or comments? Please email Ironbark Gallery Curato  renee.porter@strathfield.nsw.gov.au