Wallarobba Arts and Cultural Centre is about to make room for something Japanese artists have long valued: the pause. From 20 November to 6 December 2026, the Hornsby venue will present The Art of Roslyn Kean, a collection of woodblock prints by the Galston artist, with Hornsby Shire Council.
The word for it is ma, a pause in space or time. It is the idea that emptiness and stillness carry as much meaning as what fills a page. Kean builds her prints around it. Her work shows deep respect for Japanese artistic values, yet it approaches them from a contemporary angle, using a printmaking method practised for generations.
Kean told Council she draws on those aesthetic values to make work that is calming and engaging, and also distinctive and personal. That balance has been noticed. She received the 2025 Hornsby Art Prize Local Artist Award, and she is widely recognised for bringing a modern sensibility to Japanese woodblock printing. Her prints are known for their complexity and nuance, and for a distinctive handling of form and space.
A second work sits beside the prints. Rock at the Roadside is a collaborative mokuhanga project that Kean conceived, joining traditional Japanese woodblock techniques with a selection of tanka poems.
Mayor Warren Waddell has called Kean’s work both technically impressive and deeply engaging. He said the exhibition is a chance to celebrate a talented local artist whose work links Hornsby Shire to a rich international tradition, and added that Council is proud to support local artists and give the community outstanding cultural experiences. Visitors are expected from across Australia and Japan.
The exhibition is free and open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm, from 20 November to 6 December 2026, at 25 Edgeworth David Avenue, Hornsby. Details are at https://www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/roslyn-kean-art.
