What's on in the Canberra arts scene, December 1, 2017

Wherra grew up in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, where he lived both a traditional Ngarinyin life but also experienced life in a colonial context.

As a young man he was convicted of murder. Acting according to traditional law but judged under British law, he was sentenced to life in prison. Here he developed a passion for the American comic serial The Phantom, and a flair for carving boab nuts, often telling dramatic stories about betrayal and revenge, and the consequence of cultural and legal transgression. His detailed and graphic style shows a clear influence from the comic books he loved.

Wherra was freed by a Royal Pardon in 1964, after which he continued to carve boab nuts.

The nuts are on display in Xplore, a new space at the museum which will feature intriguing objects from the collection displayed in unusual and surprising ways.

Gorman Arts Centre resident Paul Summerfield has taken out third place in the State Library of Victoria and RedBubble's #CreateArtHistory competition.

Attracting more than 2000 entries from artists around the world, the competition challenged artists to create new work inspired by the library's vast collection. Summerfield's winning entry, Fantastic Botanical, combined illustrations from rare books in the library's collection to create "a wonderfully colourful and textural landscape with hidden details".

Summerfield is a digital artist working with a variety of print media. His art style blends traditional painting and drawing techniques with digital mediums. His work has been seen on people's walls with limited edition framed works, private artwork commissions, nightclubs, hospitals, public spaces, cars, institutions for the 2012 Enlighten festival, coffee cups, books, album covers, posters, fliers and many other places.

Recently his work was installed as murals in the Canberra Hospital's adolescent's ward, and in 2017, he was commissioned to create large-scale murals which adorn two Action buses.

Check out his website psummerfield.com

Artistic director of the Canberra International Music Festival Roland Peelman introduced emerging Indigenous composer Brenda Gifford at the festival launch last week. Gifford is writing her first commission for the festival's opening event, a musical cycle on the seasons from an Indigenous perspective. Peelman said the 2018 festival "is about how we connect with our past, but also how we connect with our future." Running from April 27 to May 6 it will emphasise Indigenous culture, the ancient traditions of the bard, Baroque and classical music on period instruments and birthday tributes to Claude Debussy and Leonard Bernstein. From Beowulf to Bach and Bernstein, 23 ticketed concerts, intimate conversations with Festival artists, musical walks and free events, the 2018 season delves into great masterpieces and discovers the music of our time in new ways.

When you're looking for Christmas gifts, where can you go for something truly unique? Try Watson Arts Centre where local potters and ceramicists have a wonderful selection of ceramic art and pottery in Canberra Potters' Christmas Fair. Between the fair and the potters place shop you're sure to find the perfect gift at the perfect price, and you'll know that you're buying from a local maker.

This year new makers present their creations alongside old favourites. Old favourites they may be but that doesn't mean there's anything tired in the works that are on offer as makers are always exploring new ideas and expanding their ranges.

Open daily until December 23, 10am to 4pm, Watson Arts Centre, Aspinall Street, Watson.

The first Canberra Carols by Candlelight concert was held in front of Old Parliament House on Christmas Eve 1945 and continued there until the completion of Stage 88 in Commonwealth Park in 1988.

Woden Valley Youth Choir was first involved in leading the singing at Carols by Candlelight in the early 1970s and took over the organisation of the carols in 1996. New artistic director Kimberley Steele will lead the event for the first time this year. Now in its 73rd year, about 10,000 people enjoy the event every Christmas, and funds raised go to a local charity. This year the charity is Parkinson's ACT. Get along on December 13. Sing loudly.