Innisfail Tapestries

*When I was a kid growing up in the North Queensland town of Innisfail, one of the favourite sports was swimming. Innisfail, being a town in the tropics is often hot and humid. A great relief from the heat was to head for the river and cool off with a swim in the slow moving green waters of the Johnstone River. Spanning the south branch of the river was a bridge that connected my home suburb of East Innisfail with the rest of town. The Bridge was called the Jubilee Bridge. A lot of the local kids enjoyed jumping off the “bridge”, it was scary and fun at the same time! It was also a ‘rite of passage’ or an ‘initiation’. When I was just a little grunter the older boys would egg us younger ones on to “Go from the bridge!” at first most of u...

*Acrylic on Stonhenge Paper 20cm x 29cm Unframed $100AUD* *“Rankin Street - Innisfail” is now available for purchase @ www.carymcaulay.com My Webstore is an easy way to purchase my paintings direct from me without incurring any commercial gallery’s commission. This can be a saving of up to 45% on the regular retail price set at some galleries. Buy 2 or more paintings at a time I will automatically give you a 20% discount on your total purchase. Buy 3 or more paintings at a time I will automatically give you free postage/freight within Australia. Commissions from art collectors accepted.*

I swam in this river many times, with my mates....never once were we bothered by the Crocs...but that was over 30 years ago now and with the protection of the Crocs in the north of Australia a bit older than that, the Crocs are now back in force... you don't see many kids cooling off in the slow moving green twin rivers of my beloved Innisfail these days! But come to think of it - I was always more worried about sharks that would come up into the Johnstone Rivers to clean out their gills in the fresher waters of the rivers...there was a great swing from a tree on the right hand river bank of this scene...good memories. oil on panel 40cm x 40cm Original Painting Sold

Acrylic on Stonehenge Paper 20cm x 29cm $100AUD (unframed) The Joss House (Chinese Temple) in Owen Street Innisfail is a beautiful building. I have always been intrigued by it and I used to go into it as a kid and marvel at the wonderful Chinese art inside. It had a ‘quiet’ air inside that I loved being in. The Joss House is a great example of Innisfail’s multi-cultural heritage. The Chinese people have a deep connection with Innisfail and have been an integral part of its formation and continue to be an important part of the town’s Cultural diversity.

*Great fishing and swimming spot when I was a kid!* *46cm x 61cm SOLD*

Acrylic on Stonehenge Paper 20cm x 29cm $100AUD (unframed) East Innisfail with its distinctive Art Deco Water-tower bathed in sunlight as viewed from the top of the Shire Hall building (which I was fortunate enough to get access to when I was an apprentice painter in the Johnstone Shire Council).

* This painting I donated to the cause to raise money for the Josh House Restoration a few years back.*

Oil on Canvas 30cm x 40cm SOLD Back in the 80s this is what Warrina Lakes looked like from Emily Street.

*I rode the Pushie up this hill a few times when I was a kid!* *oil on canvas 12cm x 18cm Original SOLD*

Oil on panel 60cm x 50cm $150AUD Going to the ‘Pictures’ on a Friday or Saturday night was a big thrill for me when I was a young bloke. Many adventures were had there by a lot of people living in Innisfail. The Blue Bird café next door served THE best milk shakes in town! It had booth seating which was a favourite place the catch up with mates before the show started next door. It also had on its walls Movie posters from past attractions up high and mirrors here and there down below, which made the whole place sparkle and seem vast. I remember some imagery of movie posters stayed with me as I developed as the boy-artist, a couple were ‘Frogs’ a B-Grade horror flick and 10,000 years BC with Barbara Bach standing there ready for a f...

Oil on canvas 60cm x 90cm SOLD Innisfail, from the waterline of the Johnstone River. It is 1989 and I took the photo that I used as reference for this painting when I was Kayaking. I was rowing around Banana Island, when upon rounding the island I thought that this angle of town would make a good painting, so I took a photo. The waterfront along the Esplanade has changed a lot since those days.

*This painting was inspired from a photo that a friend took while looking through a window in a house at Flying Fish Point near Innisfail North Queensland.* *acrylic on stretched canvas* *50cm x 60cm* *SOLD*

*Oil on canvas panel (Framed)* *61cm x 91cm* *$365AUD* *This painting is a tribute to the pioneers of the Timber Industry here in Australia.*

*Acrylic on Stonehenge Paper 20cm x 29cm $160AUD (unframed)* *This painting is available for sale from Anam Cara Art Studio, Blackbutt, Queensland, Australia. For sales inquiries contact the studio.* *Email: [email protected]* Innisfail’s main street is Edith Street. Growing up in this town leaves me with many great memories of all of the things that I witnessed or heard about that I wish I did. Some memories of Edith St are the busy Saturday mornings and the sensation that Thursday night was when it first was allowed by the government of the day. I remember the street was packed with the locals all wide eyed about the thrill of night time shopping! On that night I accompanied my darling mother to help with the shopping, it...