The Great Boat Approaches by Deborah Norrie-Jones | Opening Event

Join Creative Room Art Space for the opening of The Great Boat Approaches, a new exhibition by Meanjin/Brisbane-based artist Deborah Norrie-Jones.

Bringing together poetry, archival works and recent artworks, the exhibition explores relationships and mortality, tracing Deborah's journey through her husband's terminal illness, their travels together, their return to the homeland, and life after his death.

Gestural charcoal and pastel drawings sit alongside watercolours, oil paintings and recent abstract figurative acrylic works. Informed by Expressionism and Deborah's background in arts therapy, her process begins with a "felt sense on the edge of the unknown", followed by intuitive mark-making and reflection.

Recurring images of boats, water, cliffs and distant landscapes carry memories of travel, illness, faith, doubt, love and loss, while leaving space for viewers to find their own meanings within the work.

This exhibition will also support Cancer Council, with Creative Room Art Space donating 5% of the sale price of original works sold through the gallery from its commission.

Free entry. Registration recommended.

The Great Boat Approaches is on view from 9 October to 4 November 2026.