SURGE

SURGE is a group show, exhibiting 6 emerging artists, local to Penrith.
The premise of this show, as reflected in its title, evokes the powerful momentum that is building in Western Sydney’s arts scene. These artists work across a number of disciplines, including painting, collage, photography and digital media, and are an exploration of their lived experience and the ever-present questions they face as young people in today’s tumultuous society.

Estella Brasier

Brasier’s work explores themes of identity, memory and place through a blend of portraiture, impressionism and realism. Drawn to how light shapes perception, she uses oil paint to capture fleeting moments and emotional tones, blurring the boundary between reality and memory to invite quiet, contemplative reflection

Starphire Jacobs

Starphire Jacobs, a Dharug-Wiradjuri artist, creates digital portraiture on textile and photographic prints, blending traditional dot and line work with modern techniques. Their work celebrates Aboriginal culture, queer identity and multicultural heritage, honouring diverse faces and stories through personalised, emotionally rich artworks grounded in storytelling and cultural pride.

Ilana Lapid

Based on Dharug country, Ilana Lapid is a first-generation Filipino Australian artist whose work explores value through destruction and reconstruction. Her collection invites viewers to notice and care for everyday surroundings, blending childhood memory, found objects, textile and abstracted imagery through layered painting and collage.

Byron McIntosh

As a graphic designer and artist, Bryon has a deep fascination for visual storytelling and layered narratives. He specialises in fine-detail pen drawings that captivate both from a distance and under close inspection. Inspired by the human experience as it unfolds through history and across cultures, he creates works that are compelling and aesthetically engaging.

Divya Lotliker

Divya is an interdisciplinary artist working across visual and performance art. These works offer a tender reflection on living in a world numbed to death and loss. In the shadow of ongoing genocide, they ask, how do we hold grief that has no end, no resolution, no resting place?