Andrew Tomkins - In Search of Eurydice

Andrew Tomkins, Flight #1, Black Japan on paper, 56 x 56 cm
$1300

Andrew Tomkins

In Search of Eurydice

21 March – 18 April 2026

Art Atrium 48 is proud to present ‘In Search of Eurydice’, a new body of work by Andrew Tomkins that captures personal experience through a mythological lens - drawing on the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, a timeless tale of love, happiness, and grief - as a parallel source of inspiration. Engaged with mythology as an intrinsic form of cultural spirituality, Tomkins approaches these tales as enduring vessels of wisdom, passed down from generation to generation through the verbal art of storytelling and collective remembrance. Interweaving the personal with the mythical, Tomkins mirrors his own journey with that of Orpheus, offering an underlying lesson for us all: to never look back and to always move forward.

This series presents a complexity of multi-layered surfaces and materials, where structure is erased to create greater substance. ‘In Search of Eurydice’ highlights Tomkins’ pursuit of more space, or what he coins an “indescribable volume”, allowing the surface of his art to materialise this sense of depth, while the underlying translucence connotes a fleeting glimpse of what may lie beneath. Through this nuanced field of perception, Tomkins invites the viewer into the intimate realm of his artistic lens, in the hope that they may gain insight into his own personal world.

Exhibition Opening

Exhibition Opening to be launched by:
Kelly McDonald
Assistant Gallery Director/Senior Curator of Mosman Art Gallery

Saturday 21 March 2026
2:00 - 4:00 pm

Artist Talk

Andrew Tomkins in conversation with:
Renee Porter
Curator of the Ironbark Gallery, Strathfield Council Library & Innovation Hub)

Thursday 16 April 2026
6:00 - 8:00 pm

About the Artist

Andrew Tomkins studied at Julian Ashton Art School from 1986 to 1990 after gaining his qualification as a builder and surveyor and obtaining his builder’s licence in 1985.

His appreciation of the natural world and the environment, combined with a longstanding passion for art, has led to a distinguished exhibiting career and recognition in numerous prizes. He is a two-time winner of the Gallipoli Art Prize (2023, 2025) and has also received the Inaugural Burwood Art Prize (2017), the Henry Bucks of Mosman Commendation Prize (2015), as well as earlier awards including the Fairfield Art Prize, Drummoyne Municipal Art Society Drawing Prize, RAS NSW Drawing Prize, and the Macquarie Towns Art Prize.

Tomkins has been a finalist in a wide range of major awards, including the Wynne Prize, Dobell Drawing Prize, Gallipoli Art Prize, Fisher’s Ghost Art Award, Mosman Art Prize, NSW Parliament Plein Air Painting Prize, Korea-Australia Arts Foundation Art Prize, Waverley Art Prize, Gosford Art Prize, Fleurieu Peninsula Art Prize and Wollongong Art Prize.

He has exhibited extensively in Australia and internationally, including at regional galleries, art fairs, and major institutions such as Sydney Contemporary, Art Central Hong Kong, and the Beijing International Biennale at the National Art Museum of China, where his work is also held in the collection. In 2020, he was awarded an artist residency and exhibition at the Ningbo Museum of Art.

Artist Statement

‘In Search of Eurydice’ describes personal experience seen through the lens of a mythological journey. The Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice; A timeless tale of love, happiness and overwhelming grief.

I have a fascination with the world of mythology. These stories form an intrinsic part of cultural spirituality, passed on down generations through verbal connection. Many cultures still maintain a verbal history, needed to maintain social cohesion. It could be said the wisdom afforded us in much mythology is still relevant to human existence today.

The works in this exhibition, are of experiences where I have inserted myself with an imagined parallel journey to Orpheus. The message to us all is to never look back, always move forward. The work presented is a complexity of multi layered surfaces and materials, erasing structure to create more substance.

‘In Search of Eurydice’ highlights my constant search for more space, or what I call an indescribable volume. The art surface allows us to feel that volume, while translucence allows us a fleeting glimpse of what might lay deeper. My aim is to engage the viewer in the hope they gain an insight into my own world.

---

ARTWORK