Byron Spaces Gallery has launched its spring exhibition Byron Hinterland Paintings, a solo show by renowned local artist Jan Rae, on display now until 15 December 2025. The collection captures the Byron hinterland in luminous landscapes that reflect both beauty and change.
Jan, one of the three artists - Jan Rae, Nicky Neon and Geraldine Searles - behind the iconic 1984 Byron Community Centre mural on the front of the building, describes the exhibition as a celebration of place.
"This exhibition is all about the Byron hinterland, the beautiful environment that we live in. Most of these new paintings have been created over the last year. These works are about sky, land and the beauty of our environment. I hope people who live here will be able to relate to them."
While many of Jan's earlier works have explored people and society, this exhibition shifts the focus entirely to the natural world. Each canvas is free of buildings or man-made features, instead allowing the vast skies, rolling hills and distant ocean horizons to take centre stage. This purity of vision creates a timeless quality, offering audiences a way to see the Byron landscape through both familiar and idealised eyes.
For Jan, the return to Byron Community Centre feels like a homecoming.
"Yes, it feels like a full circle. Not only did I work on the mural in the 1980s but I have also taught tango lessons in the very room my paintings are displayed! So returning here with my exhibition does feel special. It's like a second home to me."
That sense of continuity also connects with the Byron Community Centre's 130 Years of Community Spirit celebrations in 2025. The building at 69 Jonson Street has long been woven into the fabric of local life. Jan's contribution to the iconic mural in the early 1980s remains part of Byron's cultural identity and her new paintings extend that story by honouring the environment itself.
Kate Love, Communications Manager for Byron Community Centre, said the exhibition highlights the gallery's role in supporting local talent.
"Byron Spaces Gallery was created to give artists a platform to exhibit their work, right in the heart of Byron. To welcome Jan Rae back, not only as a celebrated local artist but also as part of the Byron Community Centre's long creative history, feels especially significant."
Visitors to the exhibition can expect an intimate experience that invites them to slow down and reflect on the world around them. By engaging with Jan's vision of the hinterland, audiences are encouraged to rediscover the simple joy of land, sky and light, and to consider their own relationship with the changing environment.
Jan Rae's Byron Hinterland Paintings Solo Exhibition is FREE to view at Byron Spaces Gallery, Byron Community Centre until 15 December 2025, 10am - 4pm, Monday - Friday. Artworks are for sale through the artist. Contact: janrae7@gmail.com.
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