High Country by Sarah McDonald | New Glass by Brenden Scott French

4 September – 4 October 2026

Art Images Gallery is pleased to present High Country, a new solo exhibition by South Australian artist Sarah McDonald, shown alongside a new collection of contemporary glass by Brenden Scott French.

Together, the two displays create a strong conversation between painting and glass, with both artists exploring landscape, colour, surface and place through very different materials.

Sarah McDonald: High Country

Inspired by time spent immersed in Victoria’s Alpine National Park, High Country explores the quiet beauty, resilience and vulnerability of the alpine landscape.

For more than 25 years, Sarah McDonald has developed a distinctive painting practice centred on landscape, nature and our connection to place. Plein air painting plays an important role in her process, allowing her to experience a landscape directly and observe the changing relationships between light, colour and texture.

High Country grew from an artist residency in Victoria’s Alpine National Park, where McDonald became particularly drawn to the snow gums and their remarkable presence within the winter landscape.

Their twisted forms, patterned trunks and ability to withstand an environment that can be both beautiful and severe became a central focus for this body of work.

Across the exhibition, quiet paths, snow-covered ground, dense canopies and shifting light create a sense of immersion and stillness. McDonald’s richly layered oil paintings capture not only the appearance of the landscape, but also the experience of being within it.

Her textured surfaces echo the rugged bark, lichen and changing terrain of the high country, while the works also reflect on the balance between strength and fragility within the natural environment.

Brenden Scott French: Contemporary Glass

Presented alongside High Country is a featured display of contemporary glass by Brenden Scott French.

Based in South Australia, French works across blown and kiln-formed glass, creating distinctive pieces defined by rich colour, layered surfaces and precise geometric form.

His practice explores the material qualities of glass while drawing on ideas of memory, landscape and place. The works have a strong sculptural presence, with colour and form shifting as light moves through and across their surfaces.

Shown side by side with McDonald’s paintings, French’s glass brings another interpretation of landscape into the gallery. Where McDonald responds through paint, gesture and texture, French works through transparency, opacity, structure and form.

The two displays remain distinct, but sit naturally together, creating a considered dialogue between painting and glass throughout the space.

Experience the Exhibition Online

A virtual tour of the gallery allows you to move through both displays and experience the relationship between Sarah McDonald’s High Country paintings and Brenden Scott French’s glass as they are currently installed.

You can also explore each artist’s available works online.

VIEW SARAH MCDONALD ARTWORKS>>>

VIEW BRENDEN SCOTT FRENCH GLASS>>>

Visit Art Images Gallery

Sarah McDonald – High Country
Brenden Scott French - New Glass Work
4 September – 4 October 2026

Art Images Gallery
32 The Parade, Norwood
Adelaide, South Australia