Living in the McLaren Vale wine region led me on a 2 year journey to document an interesting aspect of 12 local wineries and produce a calendar for 2021.
The calendar can now be ordered in any size for the year of your choice. For more information on this, or for availability of paintings, cards and prints please use the contact form.
My story begins five generations ago in a fertile valley in Croatia.
Back then it was Italy and that is the language and culture I have lived. My ancestors grew vines and made wine. There’s a treasured photo of the ‘harvest crew’ complete with a bullock and donkey. I recognise the face of my father, a small boy sitting atop the hard working animal.
After the second world war the small boy, now a young man, emigrated to Australia with his parents, Emilia and Andrea. Their life began in the Bonegilla migrant camp and then moved to the fabulous ‘little Italy’ suburb of Brunswick. There was no readily available dry wine back then and so Andrea started a door to door wine distribution business, buying in bulk and rebottling for their friends in the Italian community. When the funds allowed, the family, which now included Mario’s new wife, Dolores and three young children, moved to the Riverland to establish Lubiana Winery.
That’s where I come in… a four year old who was always curious about and loved the winery. The humming pumps, the beckoning open mouths of tanks at ground level, the wet concrete reflections and the smells, oh, I loved it!
Now I live and work as a Visual Artist, in the beautiful wine region of McLaren Vale. A paradise of wonderful natural environment that supports vineyards and wineries, a vibrant food and arts community, all a breath away from a stunning coastline.