Craftsman, sculptor and furniture maker Hape Kiddle, who launches his first solo exhibition at Griffith Regional Art Gallery on Friday night, said it wasn’t nature alone that inspired him. 

“People often say nature inspires them, but my works are inspired by our relationship with the natural work and how it reflects back to us,” he said.

“I spent a huge amount of time out at Cocoparra National Park in the lead up to the exhibition. It’s a place I’ve tried to visit often.

“It has had a major role in the inspiration for the exhibition. So have the floods. They’ve shaped the exhibition.”

Mr Kiddle has used timber, jade, precious metals and bone in the pieces for this show. 

Netsuke are miniature carvings in bone and there are two of Mr Kiddle’s in particular that drew inspiration directly from the Yenda floods. 

“They’re like a dreamscape, child-like imaginings,” he said.

“One is wrapped in a feather as she sleeps and another is a child riding a fish.”

The latter came about as a result of witnessing children pulling fish out of the water before the floods. 

This exhibition differs to many of the gallery’s exhibitions of local artists simply because it is not painting-focused. 

“The exhibition is about form and sculpture and some of it is functional,” Mr Kiddle said.

“It is beautiful. 

“That’s foremost in everything I do – I think beauty engages people on a personal level.”

Gallery co-ordinator Kristy Brown said each piece forming part of the exhibition told a unique story.

“Hape has created an eclectic range of works for this exhibition and it has been a really enjoyable process seeing his works come to life,” she said.

“His work is perfection. Not one line, angle or curve is out of place.”

Sticks and Stones and Bones opens at the gallery at 6.30pm on Friday, with light refreshments available.