Diane Solomon Westerhuis
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
My first professional artworks began with a contribution to a group exhibition at Orange Regional Art Gallery in December 2012, which included an oil painting and associated sculpture, entitled ‘Empty Nest + Gone Goose’. Since that time, I have been creating paintings in oils and pastels, and learning sculpture in diverse materials. I have attended a few classes, such as a semester at the Tom Bass Sculpture School in Sydney during 2013, and a porcelain class. My objective has been to create a body of work with environmental themes, depicting my interest in endangered animals and their landscapes.
I make art because I have to; the works are inspired by my growing appreciation of the natural world. The current works represent the animals and plants which we all love and cherish. They are unique individuals; each needs to be seen to be fully appreciated, yet many are disappearing. The medium in which they appear in my works depends on their own characteristics and I attempt to capture their spirit and personality in those diverse mediums: oils for rich texture and sensuality, pastels for fine detail and depth, and sculptures most especially for their tactile qualities.
ARTIST REASON FOR PARTICIPATING
My practice aims to produce visual stories, both celebrations and cautions. These stories are all about the environment and other animals whose spaces we inhabit or invade. These are visual celebrations of species, some of which are now gone, others still survive despite our efforts. My objective is to get better at telling their stories, and the stories of these Orang-utans are very precious. So if I can tell just one of their stories, such as that of Karmila, I will have achieved something.
KARMILA
​
From Palm Oil Plantation to Jungle Freedom
In 2010, a malnourished 10-month-old orangutan named Karmila was rescued from a poor family living near a palm oil plantation in West Kalimantan. Her captors claimed they had found her alone in the forest—a tale often told to conceal the brutal truth that her mother was likely killed during deforestation. For over two months, she was fed only rice and kept as a pet, leaving her dangerously underweight.
After being confiscated in a joint effort between International Animal Rescue (IAR), BKSDA, and Yayasan Palung, Karmila arrived at the IAR Ketapang centre. Despite her bony limbs, she quickly showed signs of resilience—exploring, climbing, and forming strong attachments with her caregivers. She adored tugging on branches, nibbling leaves, and clinging tightly to her soft toys and carers alike.
Karmila thrived in baby school and later forest school, gradually gaining the skills to survive in the wild. She was especially close to her caregiver Angi, but with time, she began to climb high into the canopy with her new orangutan friends.
In a full-circle moment of hope and triumph, Karmila was released back into the wild in October 2024, alongside her own baby Batis, in Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park. Their release—part of a joint operation by IAR Indonesia, BKSDA, and the TNBBBR National Park Authority—was a powerful symbol of regeneration and recovery for a species on the brink.
Once a victim of habitat loss, Karmila now roams freely in the forests of Borneo—this time as a mother herself, raising her child in the wild.
