Sunraysia Daily. Denika Anderson Apr 10 2025

---

THE newest instalment of an art series inspired by growing up in the Mallee has been officially unveiled at the Mildura Arts Centre gallery.

Aaron Bailey's Chapter 5 (Mallee Parley) includes artefacts of his childhood like blankets which had been strung on trees of his family's now nonexistent block, and photographs of locations that are no longer there.

"I grew up here, I have memories here, and it's more than just because my family is here but there's a pull to this place that I don't think I've ever felt anywhere else," he said.

"There's an energy source here where I can recharge, Melbourne might be where I live and work but my home is here."

Much of Bailey's work is an exploration of how personhood and place connect, which he said comes down to a mixture of nature and nurture.

"I come from a very nurturing family which has played a huge impact on who I am as an individual and how I see the world," he said.

"In terms of nature there's an aridness to the Mallee, but we also have the river, and I grew up having to work as a child on grapevine blocks which is something that really had an impact on me.

"Everything in this exhibit was made in Mildura, everything was created here because then I can say that it was made under the same sun that has shaped our land, and shaped me."

Chapter 5 (Mallee Parley) will be on display at the MAC gallery until Sunday 25 May.

https://www.sunraysiadaily.com.au/arts-entertainment/6375891/framing-life-in-the-mallee

Memories of growing up on his family's Sunraysia fruit block and generations of rich Mallee history inspire the work of Mildura artist Aaron Bailey, whose latest exhibition, a tribute to his late father, is currently on display at Workspace 3496 in Red Cliffs. 

ABC's Jen Douglas went along to the gallery and had a chat with Aaron about this latest chapter in his Mallee inspired works.

https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/milduraswanhill-breakfast/aaron-bailey-artist-mildura/102216756