A celebration of the sculptor and educator whose famously cluttered studio on the Illawarra coast inspired a generation of young artists.

Edited by David Roach, award-winning screenwriter and director, and President of Clifton School of Arts.

Foreword by Dr Deborah Hart, Head Curator of Australian Art, National Gallery of Australia.

Published by Clifton School of Arts Inc.

Cover and pages designed by award-winning book designer, Luisa Laino.

Book specifications

96 pages, full colour throughout
240 x 240 mm, softcover with flaps
Genre/category: Australian art. Australian sculptors.

ISBN 978 0 646 87923 9

About the book

In 1986, when sculptor Ian Gentle first arrived in the Northern Illawarra, just south of Sydney, he set up his studio in the old School of Arts building in Clifton. The village was still a coal-mining community, and for many young people at that time Ian was the first artist they had ever met, his famously cluttered studio the first they had ever set foot in.

Now recognised as a significant Australian artist, Ian Gentle was a dedicated art practitioner, a free-spirited educator and an inspiring mentor. He had a huge influence on the young artists who came into his wild orbit, instilling in them a deep love of art and culture. In this book, Ian’s peers, students, colleagues and family recount their experience of his unconventional life and work. Ian’s voice is heard too, through notes he made about his own practice and his interaction with the art world of his day.

The Gentle Project

Ian Gentle: The Found Line is published to coincide with the launch of The Gentle Project, a major initiative centred on the life and work of Ian Gentle and staged at multiple sites in the Illawarra throughout December 2023 and January 2024.

Along with this book, The Gentle Project features exhibitions at Wollongong Art Gallery and Clifton School of Arts, a short documentary film, plus public seminars and workshops.