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FREDDIE TIMMS 1946 - 2017 Picaninni Gorge, 1997 acrylic on canvas 120 x 120 cm bears inscription verso: F.T. 28; F.Timms 97; Watters Gallery label with cataloguing details PROVENANCE Watters Gallery, NSW Estate of Late J R Gibb Private collection, NSW EXHIBITED Freddie Timms, Recent Paintings, Watters Gallery, Sydney, NSW, 1997 Freddie Timms was a senior Gija artist, recognised for his distinctive mapping style that translates country into large, interlocking planes of colour edged with fine dotted lines. While best known for his natural ochre paintings on canvas and board, Timms also worked in acrylic, using the medium's flat, saturated tones to heighten contrast and structural clarity in his depictions of landscape. Picaninni Gorge represents a site within the Bungle Bungle (Purnululu) Ranges, an area defined by its striking gorges, domes and watercourses. Here, Timms adapts his cartographic approach to acrylic, creating a balanced, schematic image that is not a literal view but a record of place, memory and cultural knowledge. The shift from ochre to acrylic enabled him to explore sharper edges and bolder tonal relationships while continuing his project of embedding country, kinship and history into a modern visual language. Timms' practice gained national recognition through exhibitions at Watters Gallery, Sydney, one of the first metropolitan galleries to champion East Kimberley painting. At Watters, his large-scale canvases were presented alongside other leading First Nations artists, positioning his work within the mainstream of contemporary Australian art. These exhibitions not only expanded audiences for East Kimberley painting but also affirmed Timms' role as a key interpreter of Gija country, equally at home in local cultural contexts and in national art history. @ FREDDIE TIMMS / Copyright Agency, 2025