A work by acclaimed artist, Rosalie Gascoigne, was always high on the wish list of the Canberra Museum and Gallery (CMAG).

It made sense that an artwork by Gascoigne, who spent much of her creative life at Mount Stromlo, belonged at CMAG.

The Canberra region for Gascoigne, particularly her isolated home outside Canberra, inspired her. Through her work she told Canberra’s stories, just like CMAG, but her medium was the region’s natural beauty. The artist is now world famous for her contemporary works using found objects to create works of art that reflect the Australian landscape in an artform known as assemblage.

For CMAG’s visual arts senior curator Virginia Rigney, when Gascoigne’s Wool Clip 1995 came up at auction late last year, it looked like the two worlds would finally align.

“Wool Clip represents an important opportunity to anchor her legacy within the city that shaped her practice,” Ms Rigney said.

“It captures the sun-bleached textures and quiet clarity of the place that defined Gascoigne’s singular artistic voice.”

Ms Rigney said it hadn’t been possible for CMAG to acquire a Gascoigne earlier because along with the artist’s popularity, came a hefty sale price.

“We are a young organisation, not yet 30 years old, so we had not really been in the running to acquire her work. But as a curator, when things come up at auction you look at gaps in your collection and Gascoigne was certainly one.”

The stars did align and CMAG bought the artwork at auction for more than $100,000. It was an enormous commitment for the small gallery but an important one, Ms Rigney said, to ensure that the work came back to the region which inspired it.

“With Wool Clip it fits so well because we collect social history and visual art which allows us to tell narratives in a variety of perspectives,” Ms Rigney said, adding that the work’s title was clearly so intrinsic to the nation’s capital and its connection with the wool industry.

Rosalie Gascoigne came to Canberra in 1943, the wife of eminent astronomer Ben Gascoigne, settling at Mount Stromlo.

It was in these isolated surroundings that Gascoigne became an artist. She developed her own style, wandering around, collecting things other people had discarded such as old weathered timber, wool boards, even old kitchen lino – anything that she could visualise in what were to become remarkable artworks.

Her creative spirit began with flower arranging but culminated in works of art which today hang in museums and galleries around the world.

Wool Clip 1995 by Rosalie Gascoigne is made up of weathered pieces of timber sourced from across Canberra and the Monaro. Photo: CMAG.

Her assemblage style, where a selection of connected objects are brought together to tell a story, was to take her all over the world, including as the first female artist to represent Australia at the Venice Biennale. It was a remarkable achievement for an artist who had no formal training and did not start exhibiting until she was 57.

In Wool Clip, Gascoigne uses sawn timber on board to create a minimalist landscape, probably not unlike the scenes she experienced on Mount Stromlo.

“Living there in that remote area for 12 years, she learned to understand the climate and it was a reservoir she drew on for the rest of her life,” Ms Rigney said.

“I love that her titles are open-ended, loose enough not to be illustrations of something but still allowing you to make your own association.”

To acquire Wool Clip, CMAG drew deeply on its reserves. Now safely in the Canberra collection, CMAG has launched an appeal inviting Canberrans to be part of the story by making a donation. So far, about 10 per cent of the purchase price has been raised through public donations.

By donating to the appeal, Canberrans can help support acquisitions like Wool Clip and help care for it, as well as continuing to grow the collection that tells the story of their city.

“Canberrans should be very proud of the CMAG collection, a collection that belongs to them,” Ms Rigney said.

More information on how you can support the Wool Clip acquisition is available on the CMAG website.

Wool Clip 1995 is now on display at CMAG, London Circuit, Civic. It’s open weekdays from 10 am to 4 pm and midday to 4 pm on weekends; entry is free.