The Port Kembla artist, 26, will have 24-hour access to a stocked studio in the gallery, ready for him to create at any time over his year-long residency.

"It is an opportunity to develop my practice. I don't really have a proper studio at home; I've just been working out of a corner of Mum and Dad's garage," Mr Uzunovski laughed.

"Now, I've got this big, beautiful space to myself, I can spread my wings."

Mr Uzunovski is working on a series of abstract paintings reinterpreting memories on canvas.

"Memories are such an abstract thing, so I find the best way to visualise a memory is through paint," he said.

"It started as a series of landscapes mapping my memories of houses and beaches and streets in Port Kembla, things ingrained in my memory."

He is just settling into his new artist-in-residence title but will soon begin planning for his major exhibition, to be held in July.