At the junction

Wentworth artist Steve Hederics draws inspiration from two of Australia’s mightiest rivers.

Story By Nathan Dyer

The artist’s hand sweeps across the sheet of paper. He lunges towards the easel, dashing a line of charcoal across a previously unmarked section. Morning sun streams through the gallery windows, bathing the scene in soft, golden light. “You can feel the energy of the two rivers as you get closer to the junction,” Steve Hederics says, without taking his eyes off the paper. Before him, the charcoal embodiment of two of Australia’s greatest rivers is slowly emerging. A beautiful woman with wild, flowing hair dances arm-in-arm with a handsome, bearded man. “Old Man Murray waltzing his Darling to the sea,” Steve says.
The two great rivers, and their meeting place just down the road from Steve’s Artback Gallery and Café, are recurring themes in the Wentworth artist’s work. Sprawled across a nearby desk are sketches of what Steve hopes will one day be a tourist-attracting walkway to the Murray–Darling junction. On a wall, a series of black-ink paintings depict native waterhens darting along the riverbank. Outside, a red gum sculpture of a giant Murray cod and a native catfish stands on the street corner.