Interrestrial – Interactive ceramics @ Nishi Gallery

29 August 2015 to 13 September 2015
I visit lots of exhibitions. I have been schooled to “Do Not Touch!!” for so long I feel awkward when allowed to do it. So after the sense of naughtiness wore off this exhibition became fun. Ceramics are hardy creations and having touched lots of objects in this exhibition I never felt they were under threat.
The blurb says
Interrestrial is an exhibition of interactive ceramics that breaks free of the white-washed world of the gallery and invites you to touch and play to your heart’s content. Featuring the work of Verney Burness, Richilde Flavell, Isabelle Mackay-Sim, Michelle Lim and Zoë Slee, which spans a variety of ceramic approaches, from functional objects to sculptural forms and installations. These five artists work within the theme of interactivity to explore the materiality of clay in their own unique ways.
Have a look at the range below, they are all interesting and worth the visit
https://richildeflavell.wordpress.com/2015/08/21/interrestrial-exhibition-interactive-ceramics/

Capital Chemist Art Award 2015 @ Tuggerenong Arts Centre

17-29 August 2015

Nearly forty works from some of the best artists in the Canberra region are on display in the Capital Chemist Art Award 2015 exhibition at Tuggerenong Arts Centre this week. Lots of styles and media are used and the quality is pretty good. All pictures are on sale ranging from $150 to $6,800,

There are several of my favourite local artists with entries in the Award. Julie Bradley’s Bestiary is a beautiful collection of smaller images reflecting her love of nature.

Adrienne Conway produced a great almost haunting picture called Lords of the Waterhole.

Below are several pics of some of the other varied works in the show and the full gallery sheet and price list.

Dual Occupancy – Hung Keung @ ANU School of Art Gallery

Wed 19th August – Sat 29th August

Bloated City / Skinny LanguageV
ideo art is often fascinating. The latest in the series of graduate exhibitions at the ANU School of Art Gallery consists largely of video art. One is a very large double screen set of scattered leaf like images that move. The surprise is that as you walk through opposite the screen you as the viewer are integrated into the image. I liked the fact that you could work out how to observe the artwork and keep yourself out of the image. The other images have an almost propaganda filme look to them but stayed very engaging.
Below are some stills and the flyer advertising the exhibition.

Heroes and Villains – William Strutt @ National Library of Australia

Colonial history is fascinating. Primary sources are valuable. Strutt is an artist who lived in Australia for just 12 years but worked those years into a significant contribution to understanding the mid 1800s in Australia.
The exhibition brings together Strutt’s creative output from institutions in three states and the National Library’s collection. There are grand historical paintings, portraits, preparatory sketches, book illustrations and many other types of artworks.
The National Library pulls together wonderful historical exhibitions and this is up to their usual standard. I love the details about Strutt’s ambition to do big historical works that was thwarted. I enjoyed reading all the great material about his travels and his devotion to the research and preparation for his great paintings. The pictures, the drawings and the text material combine to create a great insight into the world of mid 1800s Australia and the work of one of our early artist.
There was a photography ban in the gallery. All the images in the exhibition are government owned works. Every image was created well before the death of the artist 100 years ago. I have included three of his major works taken from Google images.

https://www.nla.gov.au/exhibitions/heroes-and-villains

Bricks to Canvass @ Aarwun Gallery Federation Square

The current exhibition at the Aarwun Gallery at Federation Square is called Bricks to Canvass
The blurb on the website reads “Aarwun Gallery presents the story of the nation’s ex street artists and their rise to fame on the global art market. Featuring works by Canberra born Archibald finalist Luke Cornish (AKA ELK), Reko Rennie (currently showing at this years Venice Biennale) and Banksy collaborator Anthony Lister. Also showing Mark Whalen, Jackson Slattery, Vexta, Ghost Patrol and Sean Whalen.”
The exhibition features samples from each of the listed artists and the street nature of the work is usually clear. The gallery also has books on display that work through the catalogue of most of the artists. It was fun to be able to scan through a big collection of good prints as well as seeing the full scale works on the wall.
I enjoyed these works and have included some sample shots of works and bio materials of three of the artists to give the sense of their work.
http://aarwungallery.com/

Madeleine Winch – Home @ Beaver Galleries

Red and green dominate the colour palette for Madeleine Winch’s Home exhibition at the Beaver Galleries. The dominant form is a house with the classic simplicity of a Monopoly house. The houses look uninhabited and some are decorated with leaves. The exhibition also contains some stylised mother and child paintings. The set is vibrant and almost evokes thoughts of flame with the dominant reds.
Pics and gallery sheets below.

Janet Dawson – Paintings and Drawings @ Nancy Sever Gallery

1 – 30 August 2015
The great thing about visiting the Nancy Sever Gallery is that Nancy is there and she is always highly informed about the artists she shows. The show is about Janet Dawson. It is not a classic retrospective but it is Janet sharing her artworks as she is getting older. Most of the works on display are being exhibited to the public for the first time. The works range across sketches through small and large paintings. Their subject matter ranges through Janet’s many interests including vegetables, landscapes, urban Canberra, unposed still life and collages.
Here is a link to an informative Canberra Times article
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/canberra-life/janet-dawson-paintings-and-drawings-review-is-a-rich-harvest-20150805-gismqg.html
Some pics and the informative gallery sheet are below

Sandra Black – Fragility @ Beaver Galleries

Sandra has real mastery of her ability to create delicate beautifully decorated ceramic objects. Her exhibition at the Beaver Galleries has maybe 30 objects characterised by holes in the ceramic that allow Australian flora designs to appear on the surface. Her choice of colours are earth linked and the designs are practical and beautiful.
Pictures below show the delicate beauty of her works in an exhibition aptly titled Fragility.

Innerspace @ Canberra Contemporary Arts Space Braddon

There is a members show on currently at the Gorman House Contemporary Arts Space. It has video art, fabric, painting, sculpture and other media. Curated by David Broker it has a wonderful vibrant look. The hanging knitted sculptures have every conceivable colour. Lots of other features of the works create a sense of “I wonder what that is about”.
If your are reading this the good news is that there is a catalogue on line ccas.com.au
Below are just some snaps

Lightness of Being – David Kim @ Belconnen Arts Centre

7 – 30 August 2015
David Kim’s abstract paintings are full of bold Blues, greens, yellows and reds. The acrylic works are accompanied in this exhibition by some enameled jewellery and ceramic tiles. The blurb on the gallery sheet below explains David’s approach.
Some pics and the gallery sheet below.