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Zoe Grey

@zoe__makes

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~ Based in Marrawah, lutruwita/Tasmania, Australia
~ Represented by Despard Gallery, nipaluna/Hobart

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‘The shortest day’ ~ 2026 ~ oil on board ~ 81 x 61 cm.

“The setting sun appears in many of the paintings of this show. My Mum taught me to make time for it; to value this moment of awe we get at the end of each day. It’s also a time for me to be present with place, to pause, observe, be with it. I climb the rock next to my house and watch the colours in the sky change and the rocks and hills and ocean echo it. Sometimes I see Dad, doing the same thing a few hundred meters away, on the hill of our family home. We wave at each other as the sun falls into the sea and turns the world pink.”

Last two days to catch ‘Out of the Blue’ at @despardgallery 🧡 link to all work in bio x by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

‘Weak Water’ ~ 2026 ~ oil on board ~ 90 x 122 cm

The tree outside my studio window, an abalone, the rocky shore. Gentle parts of place, that sometimes hold me.

Last few days to catch ‘Out of the blue’ at @despardgallery 🧡 taken in Despard Gallery by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

‘Flag for you lV’ ~ 2026 ~ oil on linen ~ 55 x 79 cm

“Many summers ago, mum and I went through a brief salt making endeavour. We would walk down to the ocean in front of the family home and collect sea water. We’d bring it back up the steps and pour it into big flat trays to dry in the hot January sun under the old windows with the blue frames. A few days later we’d scrap it out and put it in tiny jars and start the process again. We probably made about eight tablespoons of salt over the month. Not exactly an enterprise, but a sweet memory of togetherness and slowness.”

Last week to catch ‘Out of the Blue’ at @despardgallery 🧡 link to catalogue and more writing in bio x taken in Despard Gallery by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

‘Like trying to hold water still’ ~ 2026 ~ Acrylic and oil on canvas ~ 198 x 153 cm

Fun to start, tricky to finish

This painting is part of ‘Out of the Blue’ showing at @despardgallery until the 19th of Sep. Link to catalogue in bio 🧡 taken in Despard Gallery by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

Thank you @slumbergalleon / @makeanddo_tas for this considered, generous and insightful review of ‘Out of the Blue’ in TAS Weekend 🧡 you got it. by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

I’ve spent the week reflecting on what was a very special opening for ‘Out of the Blue’ at @despardgallery. It’s an incredibly personal body of work, that was painful, cathartic and beautiful to make, and played a big part in the ongoing process of grieving my mum. I guess I didn’t realise that releasing the paintings into the world would be part of that process too.

I’m lucky to have an art practice that I can turn to, but I’m feeling a new sense of gratitude for the part of the practice that is sharing the work. Having others see it, and feel it with me, maybe grieve in their own way. As I spoke at the opening, I was so moved by the absolute gift of being in a room full of people who were there for me and the work, who were in the emotion with me, in real time. It was rare and raw and something I’ll always remember. So thank you, to those who came, those who have visited the show since and those who have looked online and reached out. I am touched by the response.

🧡

First picture - Dear friend and mentor Lisa Garland graced us with her words of wisdom, musings on the west coast and poetic reflections on life and the landscape. Tears in our eyes.

Second picture - My dad and my brother, with me through it all. Tears in our eyes. taken in Despard Gallery by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

Flag for you lll, 2026, Oil on unstretched Linen, 71 x 86 cm 〰️〰️

‘Our family has a slightly comical, yet deeply serious, respect for Volvo cars. The first 240 station wagon we had was matt blue, and my absolute favourite colour as a little girl. My brother Zak and I were young, and we’d happily bounce along in the back, off to town, or school, or a friends house down the road. But as we got older, we grew more and more embarrassed by the string of dodgy, aged, Volvo’s we’d be dropped off in. Now, we see it as iconic, and inextricably linked with our simple, lucky childhood.’

Pop into @despardgallery to see this work, and all the others in my show ‘Out of the Blue’ on until 19th September. Link to catalogue in bio 🧡 by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

George, at home 🧡 happy birthday darling boy, life with you is sweet by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

‘The Gap’, 2026, Acrylic and oil on canvas, 183 x 275 cm 〰️〰️

“Years ago, my mum pointed out a particular spot on the shoreline in front of our home, where you can see through a gap in the rocks to the ocean on the other side. The rocks shoot up on an angle, the horizon steadfast behind it. It’s a unique little pocket of place, a satisfying scene. Mum said ‘you should make a painting about it’ she’d never suggested something like this, so I did. When I’m down on those rocks most days, either walking, or coming in or out of the ocean for a surf or swim, I look at that spot, and I think of her.“

Pop into @despardgallery to see this work, and all the others in my show ‘Out of the Blue’ on until 19th September. Link to catalogue in bio 🧡 by @zoe__makes

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a month ago

‘Out of the blue’ opens tonight at @despardgallery, 5:30pm, I hope you can make it 🧡

‘This show is the process of painting my dear home, a place that seems to only seep deeper into my being as time goes by. It’s the loss of my mother, the stickiness of grief and the way the landscape can console. Much like my experience of the last few years, the paintings are weighted, but they also encompass small yet defiant moments of warmth, light and healing. It turns out these two unlikely friends - joy and sorrow - can sometimes hold hands, and exist together, at the same time’

If you’d like to see the work, catalogue and accompanying writing, visit the link in my bio

🧡 by @zoe__makes

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2 months ago

My show ‘Out of the Blue’ opens with @despardgallery in less than two weeks. This is a deeply personal body of work that has been both emotional and cathartic to make. I am nervous, eager and excited to share. The opening is on the 28th of August, 5:30pm at Despard Gallery, Hobart. Join me for a champas and a cry x

If you’d like to receive a catalogue once they’re available, hit the link in my bio to register your interest 🧡 by @zoe__makes

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2 months ago

self portrait in the studio 〰️〰️ by @zoe__makes

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3 months ago