Exciting news – the Parmelia Hilton Hotel will reopen in February and with their reopening ‘The Spirits Within’ can finally be revealed.
The largest single canvas I’ve ever done. It measures more than 5m wide and almost 2m high, includes 10 months of painting, assembled objects and a full model boat! It took quite a team to pull this one together including a daring exit over the second floor verandah in Margaret River. All arrived safely for installation in Perth.
The Parmelia Hilton Hotel is applying the final touches of it’s year-long renovation and will open the doors to the public in early February.
We can’t wait to share it with you.
The Spirits Within
Leon Pericles, 2020
mixed-media with construction and chosen objects on canvas
1810mm x 5390mm
Leon Pericles depicts a historic map of Western Australia from early settlement to the present, layered on the ancient land. Subtle marking can be seen to represent the many spirits of the Aboriginal people of Western Australia who have held this coast and vast landscape in their care for more than 60,000 years. It is this country and the spirits within the earth that are the hidden foundation of this large and complex work.
Historic sites, the ever-present Australian larrikin and the many cultures from foreign shores who with their families, skills and talents contributed to the growth and prosperity of this huge state, combine to create a stretched-out map which honours the traditional owners and the many generations who have built present-day Western Australia.