Indholdsfortegnelse for September/October 2023 i Art Guide Australia

Vincent Namatjira: Australia in colour Art Gallery of South Australia 20 October—21 July 2024 Vincent Namatjira cemented his household name when his portrait of AFL player Adam Goodes, Stand strong for who you are, won the Archibald Prize in 2020. It was the first time an Aboriginal artist had won the prestigious award—and this painting, among Namatjira’s wider oeuvre, is showing for his first survey, Vincent Namatjira: Australia in colour at the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA). Bringing together paintings, works on paper and the moving image, the exhibition celebrates Namatjira as a chronicler of Australian identity: an artist who uses humour, caricature and wit to mine politics, money and power from a First Nations perspective. Often portraying himself in his work, Namatjira draws the viewer into his narratives,…

Stillness-juxtaposed Dapeng Liu Art Atrium 21 October—4 November There is stillness everywhere if you know where to look. Dapeng Liu’s latest exhibition presents this immovable state in both painted abstract landscapes and recreations of split-second frames from popular films, news and the internet. Displayed side by side, from the disparate surfaces, something harmonious emerges. “They have a different sense of stillness,” says the Sydney-based artist of his paintings. “I got a lot of feedback for my previous works from audiences—they can see calmness, peacefulness and stillness in there. I’m expanding this into a different realm.” Born in Beijing, Liu takes inspiration from traditional Chinese landscape painting, adapting its shifting perspectives into his own work. The artist’s colourful landscapes depict mountains and water through this lens, often with translucent areas where…

Pulping at the Forum Nick Modrzewski COMA Gallery 13 October—10 November Nick Modrzewski combines his art practice with a similarly intense career in the law. He may be the only person who has graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts (2016) in the same week as commencing work as a judge’s associate (he’s now a practising barrister). In his third exhibition at COMA, a playful collision of his two worlds see abstracted forms morphing between shapes and bodies: these painted tableaux are invested with mythic qualities. As Modrzewski says of his two worlds, “I have a constant internal juggling match between art and my law practice. Law is traditionally seen as very far from painting, but they inform each other: I feel tied to both. Art allows me to…

The sense of smell is central to Justine Youssef’s practice. Through scent, the Sydney-based artist brings questions of displacement, ownership, possession, and culture to the fore in ways that are both subtle and inescapable. “I’m interested in the ways that an immaterial thing like scent can make visible the otherwise unseen,” she says. Youssef’s work teases out the sociopolitical complexities of areas that she has experienced within her life. The artist grew up in Western Sydney as part of what she calls an “insular” Lebanese community, immersed in cultural practices and traditions. She realised as she got older that the land held many histories and contradictions, and that the displaced migrant narrative contains hidden layers of complicity. “We pay our taxes to this government, and those taxes fund war crimes…

The way humans communicate has changed dramatically since the 1970s—yet Wagga Wagga Art Gallery’s exploration of prints and posters from 1978 to now might suggest that the more the issues change, the more they remain the same. Wagga Wagga director Lee-Anne Hall has curated political prints for many years. Her latest exhibition, On Message – Environmental Prints and Posters 1978-2023, traces the conceptual shifts and technological developments that have impacted both what we communicate and how these messages may be printed—all across 45 years. In creating the show, Hall has drawn on Wagga Wagga’s extensive print and poster collection, with a loan of earlier material from the National Gallery of Australia. As she explains, “Environmental issues have been at the heart of much political poster making for some decades. I’ve…

16albermarle 16albermarle.com 16 Albermarle Street, Newtown, NSW 2042 [Map 7] 02 9550 1517 or 0433 020 237 Thu to Sat 11am–5pm, or by appointment. Until 16 September Disruption: Discourse and Exchange Curated by Carolyn Mckenzie-Craig An exhibition that delves into the profound significance of printmaking as a medium of communication. Students and their lecturers from the printmaking departments of four well known art schools from Australia and southeast Asia address the theme of disruption in small bodies of prints. The exhibition features work from the National Art School, Sydney, Queensland College of Art, Brisbane, Institut Seni Indonesia, Surakarta and King Mongkut Institute of Technology, Bangkok, and sheds light on the relevance of this traditional art form amidst a contemporary landscape characterised by image flux and the overwhelming presence of digital…

Bett Gallery bettgallery.com.au Level 1, 65 Murray Street, Hobart, TAS 7000 03 6231 6511 Mon to Fri 10am–5.30pm, Sat 10am–4pm. 1 September—23 September The well in the water hole Michael Schlitz Michael Schlitz’s large format, relief woodblock prints not only require physical strength, manual dexterity and mental determination but relic traits such as artistic skill, knowledge, patience and time. 1 September—23 September stone tides weeping trees Troy Ruffles Troy Ruffels’ work is characterised by its subtly intertwined layers, where observations of the natural landscape are overlain in a richly textured palimpsest. 29 September—21 October Lessons from the Land Stephanie Tabram Tabram has been painting for more than thirty years, having completed her studies in Sydney in 1989. Her exquisite paintings speak of the Tasmanian landscape like no others. Contemporary Art…

“… Many galleries do work with artists who are engaged in talking about the environment, to question and critique, or just to remind us of how extraordinary the natural world is —and what we are absolutely losing minute by minute.”—LEE-ANNE HALL, GALLERY DIRECTOR AND CURATOR, P. 104 Art Guide Australia is proudly published on an environmentally responsible paper using Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) pulp, sourced from certified, well managed forests. Sumo Offset Laser is FSC Chain of Custody (CoC) mixed sources certified. Copyright © 2023 Print Ideas Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher. Material may not be reproduced in any form without permission. Information in this publication was correct at the time of going to press. Whilst every care has been…

TIMMAH BALL is a writer of Ballardong Noongar heritage who is influenced by studying and working in the field of urban planning. Her writing has appeared in a range of anthologies and literary journals. STEVE DOW is a Melbourne-born, Sydney based arts writer, whose profiles, essays, previews and reviews range across the visual arts, theatre, film and television for The Saturday Paper, Guardian Australia, The Monthly, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Sunday Life, Limelight and VAULT. BRIONY DOWNES is an arts writer based in Hobart. She has worked in the arts industry for over 20 years as a writer, actor, gallery assistant, art theory tutor and fine art framer. Most recently, she spent time studying art history through Oxford University. SALLY GEARON works across writing, publishing and contemporary art. Based…

Confluence Agneta Ekholm Flinders Lane Gallery 26 September—14 October Abstract Expressionist Clyfford Still once said, “No painting stops with itself, is complete of itself. It is a continuation of previous paintings and is renewed in successive ones.” This is the approach Agneta Ekholm takes with her work. Each new painting is a response to the last, a confluence of the past and present. “I always look at my work as a continuous flow,” she says. “I see it as following on from previous works.” This process is intuitive for Ekholm, who sees where inspiration takes her in layered, abstract canvases that engage with both the formal and technical elements of painting, alongside the organic nature of making marks on canvas. The Finland-born artist’s 25-year practice is a response to the…

Living Patterns, Contemporary Australian Abstraction Queensland Art Gallery 23 September—4 February 2024 Seeing elements of reality in abstract art can be complex. As curator Ellie Buttrose suggests, the key is to look longer and deeper. “The fast pace of social media requires us to process images within a couple of seconds. Abstract works might not give themselves up so quickly, but if you do a little bit of work, the rewards you reap are rich.” For Living Patterns, Buttrose brings together artists working beyond the traditional field of abstraction, with Teelah George, Margaret Rarru Garrawurra and Kate Bohunnis among a sizable contingent covering the mediums of sculpture, painting, prints and textiles. “People have been trained to follow the Clement Greenberg American abstraction model that suggests there was no content in…

Mare Amoris | Sea of Love UQ Art Museum On now—20 January 2024 The complexities of love, rage, grief, and healing are the motivations behind Mare Amoris | Sea of Love. Through a collective curatorial vision, the exhibition connects artists with varied stories, creative methods and intellectual practices from across the Pacific Ocean. Conceptualised by curators Peta Rake, Léuli Eshrāghi, Isabella Baker and Jocelyn Flynn, Mare Amoris | Sea of Love was formed through time spent walking, writing and talking with UQ Art Museum staff and artists, as well as UQ marine scientists—all part of a larger ongoing research project, Blue Assembly. Centering the areas of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) and Quandamooka Country (Moreton Bay region) the show features 20 artists who work either physically or conceptually from places where…

We’re in your studio in Eltham, looking at your latest paintings which feature your signature patterning and colour. They have a recurring eye motif, placed within what might be a face—but it’s more abstracted than that. These came out of your ‘pinhead’ sculptures, which are small ceramic faces—can you talk through that process? The paintings aren’t necessarily obvious renditions of heads or butterflies, like other works in the show—instead, I wanted to lean into something more abstract that came out in the pinheads. The pinheads are a kind of subconscious meditative process, happening when I’m not in the mood to paint or go too big with sculpture. They originally evolved out of leftover bits of clay at the end of a day of sculpting, which I manipulated into small faces…

19 Karen Contemporary Artspace 19karen.com.au 19 Karen Avenue, Mermaid Beach, Gold Coast, QLD 4218 [Map 13] 07 5554 5019 Tues to Thurs 9am–4pm, Fri and Sat 10am–2pm. 14 October–25 November Happy Place Solo Show Joaquin Valdez Macher (USA) Mini solo shows Amber Kingi (AUS) Caitlyn Taylor (AUS) Nector (CO) Sean Edward Whelan (AUS) Silas (NL) Above and Below Gallery aboveandbelowgallery.com.au Shop 12a, Port of Airlie, 33 Port Drive, Airlie Beach QLD 4802 [Map 14] 0419 941 162 Weds to Sat 9am–4pm, Sun 9am–1pm. Focusing on the ocean as a canvas, from both above in the aerial sphere and below the waters surface, this collection will have you in awe of nature and its wonderous colours and spaces. Brooke’s goal is to capture the moment and slow down time, one photo…

Adelaide Contemporary Experimental ace.gallery Lion Arts Centre, North Terrace (West End) Kaurna Yarta, Adelaide, SA 5000 [Map 18] 08 8211 7505 Tue to Sat 11am–4pm. See our website for latest information. 1 September–28 October PRIDE Peter Waples-Crowe Art Gallery of South Australia agsa.sa.gov.au Kaurna Country North Terrace, Adelaide, SA 5000 08 8207 7000 Daily 10am–5pm. Free entry. See our website for latest information. Until 17 September Frida & Diego: Love & Revolution Don’t miss the chance to see iconic works by two of the most influential and loved artists of the twentieth century – Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera – in this Australian exclusive exhibition, alongside works by key Mexican contemporaries. Tickets available online. 20 October–21 January 2024 Tarnanthi 2023 The Tarnanthi Festival returns in 2023, with exhibitions at AGSA and…

Ballarat International Foto Biennale Various Ballarat locations On now—22 October Whether photography can depict reality or ‘truth’ has long been a central question of the medium, famously contemplated by thinkers like Susan Sontag, Roland Barthes and John Berger. Subsequently, the theme of the 10th Ballarat International Foto Biennale is potent and provocative: The Real Thing. “The theme arose from questioning how we build common stories in a noisy world of media, portraits, social documentary, stills, streaming, social media block chain and NFTs,” says Vanessa Gerrans, biennale CEO. “The Real Thing asks where we are now and how we create meaning from the bombardment of images we see.” The 60-day festival sees myriad photography displays across Ballarat, including at the Art Gallery of Ballarat, and this year the biennale has secured…

Future Nostalgia Charlotte Haywood Northsite Contemporary Arts 2 September—14 October In the 1960s, evolutionary biologist Lynn Margulis was rejected and ridiculed by the scientific community for her (now widely accepted) theories of symbiogenesis, which claimed there is a cooperative relationship between species. With this framework in mind, artist Charlotte Haywood asks us to re-examine our perception of the future, using “nature as teacher”. Her new exhibition at Northsite Contemporary Arts, Future Nostalgia, is a sensory exploration of the relationship between all living things, and she uses her interdisciplinary practice not just to mirror this concept, but to also convey the relationship between the senses. Working with biologists, musicians, dancers, chefs, and many others, while also exhibiting her own intricately woven sculptural works, the exhibition offers a conceptual symbiosis to accompany…

Slow looking Elisa Crossing Nancy Sever Gallery 17 September—8 October In the 1656 portrait painting Las Meninas, Spanish artist Diego Velázquez depicts daily life in the court of King Philip IV of Spain. Breaking free from traditional portrait formats featuring centrally placed sitters, in Las Meninas Velázquez displays multiple portraits within the overall image. His subjects are seen throughout the scene—on the floor, in framed portraits on the wall, and in mirror reflections. Like an old school seek and find challenge, it takes time to find all those included. Citing Las Meninas as a key influence on her new work, artist Elisa Crossing paints images within images to encourage heightened viewer engagement. “I’ve situated all the paintings within the studio context, where I’m always seeing paintings stacked up, cropping each…

Single Use Shaun Hayes Stanley Street Gallery 18 September—7 November The work of ceramicist Shaun Hayes is a finely balanced feat of contradiction and contrast, on several intriguing levels. His new show Single Use is a continuation of his career’s primary idea: the intertwining of everyday disposable objects with traditional ceramic forms. Or, as he puts it, “Creating sculptures that are both indicative of contemporary throwaway cultural issues and the timeless nature of ceramics.” The result is a series of ceramics that are at once playful, satirical and loaded with meaning. “[The exhibition] merges single-use objects and transforms them into vitrified ceramic vessels intended for multiple uses, working as a contradiction to their intended initial use.” Yet Hayes, who lives near Canberra, is careful not to venerate traditional ceramics over…

As an artist who explores the intersections of his Indigenous queer identity, Peter Waples-Crowe pushes expectations. Moving between various mediums and contexts, he’s known for his collage, painting, mixed-media, fashion and ceramics—and has recently expanded into theatre design and moving image. He co-designed the set for Griffin Theatre Company’s Dogged in 2021 and created the 2022 video Ngaya (I Am) for ACMI. The latter is an eclectic fusion of memoir and found image that speaks to both the power and erasure of Country through subverting colonial iconography. This work will also be showing in Pride at Adelaide Contemporary Experimental, the artist’s first major exhibition outside of Naarm/Melbourne, offering space and time for Waples-Crowe to reflect on and display critical pieces from the last five years. Timmah Ball talks with Waples-Crowe…

In a recent Cordite Poetry Review interview, visual artist Chunxiao Qu, when discussing what exactly constitutes poetry, speaks of a desire for the direct interrogation of her work: “I wish someone would say to me: ‘You think this is poetry? Fuck you!’” And so, when I spoke with Qu, I told her exactly that. She responded with much glee: “I enjoy imagining people who hate my poetry being brave enough to let me know they do, and the same goes for my art.” Brash as it may sound to some, this is how Qu operates. It was only through moving to Melbourne to undergo further studies in fine art, that she continued to discover the possibilities of art making. Before this, growing up in the city of Qingdao in China,…

ACAE Gallery acaearts.com.au Australasian Cultural Arts Exchange 82A Wellington Street, Collingwood, VIC 3066 [Map 3] 0406 711 378 Tue to Sun 10am–5pm. 16 September–22 October Tony Smibert: Tao Sublime Following on from the major survey exhibition Tony Smibert: Tao Sublime, at Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery (GVMAG), in Launceston Tasmania, ACAE Gallery is excited to present selected works from Tony’s Tasmanian studio. “A singular voice in traditional, minimal and abstract art - a painter whose work blends eastern and western traditions.” -Damian Smith, Director ACAE Gallery. ACMI acmi.net.au Fed Square, Melbourne, VIC 3000 [Map 2] 03 8663 2200 Open daily 10am–5pm. 5 April—1 October Goddess: Power, Glamour, Rebellion Curated by Bethan Johnson. Alcaston Gallery alcastongallery.com.au 84 William Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000 [Map 2] 03 8849 9668 Anna Schwartz Gallery…

Aarwun Gallery aarwungallery.com.au 11 Federation Square, Gold Creek, Nicholls, ACT 2913 [Map 16] 0499 107 887 Daily 10am–4.30pm and by appointment in the evening. See our website for latest information. 16 September–8 October National Capital Art Prize Public Exhibition of Finalist The annual National Capital Art Prize is the first Australia-wide competition for artworks of any subject. Artists Shed artistshed.com.au 1–3/88 Wollongong Street (lower), Fyshwick, ACT 2609 0418 237 766 Tues to Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10am–4pm. 5 September—8 October Spring Flower Show @Artists Shed An Exhibition from Artists Shed artist Margaret Hadfield and the mentored groups. The works will be in a variety of mediums and after the long cold winter in Canberra will celebrate Spring in the way they know best. The Artists Shed is a artist owned gallery,…

Art Collective WA artcollectivewa.com.au 2/565 Hay Street, Cathedral Square, Perth, WA 6000 [Map 19] 08 9325 7237 Wed to Fri 11am–4pm, Sat 12pm–4pm, or by appointment. 7 September—10 September Sydney Contemporary Eveline Kotai and Giles Hohnen Art Collective WA presents new works by renowned Western Australian artists Giles Hohnen and Eveline Kotai. Known for his bold, spontaneous approach to composition and form, Giles has developed a series of paintings featuring vibrant, overlaid shapes on handmade canvas covered boards. Eveline exhibits a series of her distinctive stitched paintings, where she deconstructs her artworks into slender strips and skilfully reassembles them with a sewing machine and invisible thread, resulting in unexpected colour, pattern and textural combinations. 16 September—14 October Nowhere Near Brad Rimmer Continuing his exploration of rural Australia and the emotional…

Araluen Arts Centre, Mparntwe araluenartscentre.nt.gov.au 61 Larapinta Drive, Alice Springs, NT 0870 08 8951 1122 Daily 10am–4pm. See our website for latest information. 12 July–8 October Ngurrika ∙ Lyatinya ∙ Ingunth’aka Town Camps Story The important history of Mparntwe Town Camps and the residents of Town Camps is not a well-known story to non-Indigenous people. The Town Camp movement was catalysed by the displacement of people from their traditional lands and steadily built momentum from early 1974 with the incorporation of the first Town Camp Housing Associations. The Associations and Tangentyere Council Aboriginal Corporation (TCAC) were formed by Town Campers to support their efforts to gain access to land, housing, water, electricity, municipal services, community services and to address the shared experience of disadvantage. This exhibition highlights the long, proud…

MAP 1 VICTORIA MAP 2 MELBOURNE CBD MAP 3 FITZROY/COLLINGWOOD MAP 4 GREATER MELBOURNE M A P 5 & 6 NORTHERN MELBOURNE AND SOUTHERN MELBOURNE MAP 7 SYDNEY MAP 8 SYDNEY CITY MAP 9 & 10 DARLINGHURST/REDFERN/WATERLOO & PADDINGTON MAP 11 & 12 GREATER SYDNEY & NEW SOUTH WALES MAP 13 & 14 GREATER BRISBANE & QUEENSLAND MAP 15 & 16 BRISBANE & CANBERRA MAP 17 & 18 HOBART & ADELAIDE MAP 19 & 20 PERTH & FREMANTLE…