Officially opened on Saturday evening, Orange Regional Gallery’s annual HERE/NOW Exhibition is showcasing work from some of the Central West region’s best artistic talents

The 2022 HERE/NOW Exhibition features 200 works by 200 artists from Orange and surrounding shires and is located in the Alan Sisley Gallery.

First held in 2018, the exhibition continues to grow both in the number of contributing artists as well as the talent and skill on display, Director of the Orange Regional Gallery, Brad Hammond said.

“So the previous time we had 130 artists, now it's 200,” Brad said. “We are seeing a lot of the same general media and themes year after year, but I think there's a constant improvement in quality and a richer range of subject matter.

“The way that people are interpreting abstract works, or still life, or landscape paintings is quite varied, but I think the quality of the work and the skill is constantly improving so it's great to see that across our region.”

“The exhibition is open to any artist over the age of 16 who lives in the central west, which makes for a diverse and intriguing exhibition,” Brad said.

“This is really an open opportunity for everyone to show their work in their gallery… there are artists in here who are professional artists and then there are other people for whom this might be their first time showing something, who have just been tinkering away in private. We welcome everyone in that way and it's great to see them hanging side by side.”

HERE/NOW will be on display until November 13, after which the Alan Sisley Gallery will become the permanent home of the Orange Regional Gallery’s own collection.

Orange Regional Gallery is open from 10am to 4 pm daily.