Green Vale Gallery News
Dear Friends
Welcome to the September, 2008 newsletter.
The 2008 exhibition dates are firmly in the calendar, with the VIP Vernissage (VIP preview evening for previous or potential collectors) scheduled for Saturday the 8th of November and the public Open Day for Sunday the 9th of November, 2008.
I am often asked if there will be a “theme” to the exhibition and I must admit that I don’t consciously ever search or think of a theme to work to. The journey that is this life provides such an exciting array of materials and possibilities that I always feel compelled to seize these as they present.
However, having said that, if I were pressed to come up with a theme to represent the collection this year, I would say that it would be called “Transformation”. If I review the work ready to date, it involves a transformation of some kind. This definition encompasses a whole range of ideas of transformation from simple things such as working methods, to the more transcendental concepts of developing consciousness and spirituality.
Transformation can involve the appropriation of another’s work and changing it to reflect a personal concept (Australian artist Imants Tiller works only in this way, to great effect). Transformation may also been seen in the change in shape, form and structure of an object ie., a malleable lump of clay into a rigid ceramic pot, a piece of glass into a bead for an earring. Transformation may also occur when the viewer interacts with the art piece. Both objects changed in some way through the interaction. The applications of this theme are endless and allow me to work as dictated to by the day that presents! I look forward to hearing your comments in November.
Other items of interest since the January 2008 newsletter include a trip to Sydney to a NSW Art Gallery luncheon with the winner and runner-up artists of this year’s Archibald portrait prize. Del Kathryn Barton won with her self portrait with her two children. It was fantastic to hear the artists talk about their work, their subjects and how entering and winning (or being selected) has affected their lives. I followed up with a guided tour of the prize and it was an absolute treat to see the works in “the flesh” as there is an energy about paintings that you just can’t get through a photograph of the work. This was particularly so with portrait of Heath Ledger by Vincent Fantaauzzo - it felt quite prophetic, very sad, and slightly ironic. The trip has further inspired me to work towards entering this competition, so I will be calling for volunteers to sit for a portrait – although I must warn that the work will not be painted in a particularly traditional manner. The Archibald prize seeks work with a “new dynamic and a new energy”.
Another notable research trip was to Melbourne for the biennial art Fair. The Melbourne exhibition centre is a fantastic place to host this show and I was there for the opening night. The work was quite often big, or confronting, or both. First to capture the art lover’s attention was My Humvee (Peter Hennessey) a scale model of the American car, made of black plywood, parked on its nose. The Art Fair is about promoting contemporary art in the Asia-Pacific region and this year there seemed (to me) to be many more emerging artists represented, all trying desperately to be different. Sometimes this strategy worked, and at other times it didn’t. Occasionally I would see something that would make me think of the fable of the “Emperor’s New Clothes”! But then I think back to the reaction that the Impressionists got when they first exhibited and think perhaps I am a little old fashioned in my thoughts! I did notice quite a few skulls in various formats which reminded me of the ceramic Japanese print skull I had made for the last exhibition (now in a private collection), so perhaps I am not so different after all! A highlight of the opening night was chatting with artist Reg Mombasa (aka Chris Doherty, the band “Mental as Anything”, Mr Mambo etc). He had some great drawings from a recent trip he’d done with several other artists. These were executed in his usual medium of charcoal and/or coloured pencil. I could identify with a lot this work, for one there was some great colour (always a hit with my senses) and also a lot of humour in his subject matter and titles.
Back to Brisbane, the Class 7 students from the Samford Valley Steiner School came to the gallery for a day of Raku firing. They had all made small figurines out of clay, many of these were mothers with a babe in arms – all beautifully sculpted. These were bisque fired (to 1000 degrees) to make them strong enough to withstand the thermal shock involved with a Raku fire. The process was to glaze the works (we used copper oxides, which, when reduced in sawdust present beautiful colours or flashes of copper metal) and put them into my home made wood fired kiln. Steadily we fed the fire until we reached 1000 ৹C, and took them from the kiln into rubbish bins full of sawdust. It was hot and smokey and exciting! After the pieces had cooled a little we drenched them in cold water and started the laborious task of scrubbing the excess carbon from the figures. It was an amazing day, the children worked as cohesive teams and all of the work survived the fire! This is a very unusual occurrence as quite often the thermal shock takes a pot or two or three. This is an old fashioned craft, developed in Japan and modified in the west, and is a lot of alchemical fun. Next year I hope to have a few demonstration days, so that more can experience this process. Please let me know if you’d like to be included on this list.
I am looking forward to seeing you and your friends in November. This year we have collectors from as far away as New Zealand and Alice Springs coming! The Open Day programme is available for download by clicking here.
With thanks and best regards
AK Milroy (Anita)
Artist-in-residence
Guided Tour |
