ArtExpress Turns 30 – That’s MUCH Older Than its Artists

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Archibald Prize, Art, Art Express, Art Gallery NSW, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australian art, creativity, Exhibition, Higher School Certificate, New South Wales, Painting, Sulman, Sydney, Visual Art, Wynne Prize

‘Love the Home You’re In’ by Lochlan Howard
St Francis Xavier’s College
(Image from here)

Arguably, the Archibald Prize is regarded as the most important portraiture prize in the Australian art scene. Along with the Wynne (best landscape painting of Australian scenery, or figure sculpture), and Sulman (best subject painting, genre painting or mural project in oil, acrylic, watercolour or mixed media) Prizes, the Art Gallery NSW is currently exhibiting the entrants for 2013. It’s almost un-Australian not to go.

Well, even though I am not an Australian, I tootled along to see the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman. I go every year. All good. But, what I was really looking forward to was ArtExpress…

Regular readers may recall my post from last year on ArtExpress 2012 (here). ArtExpress is an annual exhibition featuring a selection of outstanding student artworks developed for the art making component of our Higher School Certificate examination in Visual Arts in New South Wales. It includes a broad range of approaches and expressive forms, including ceramics, collection of works, documented forms, drawing, graphic design, painting, photomedia, printmaking, sculpture, textiles and fibre, and time-based forms. And it is
A M A Z I N G. What these students achieve is mind-blowing, and this year was no exception (although I think 2012 just nudged ahead for me).

‘Double Think’ by Aoife Coleman-Clarke
Rose Bay Secondary College
(Image from here)

‘Babel’ by Rachel Cronin
Loreto Kirribilli
(Image from here)

‘Sweet Simplicity’ by Milli Wheeler
Oak Flats High School
(Image from here)

‘Conscience Vote’ by India Gates
Wenona School
(Image from here)

‘After Leonardo’ by Alexis O’Connor
Wenona School (a cracking year for Wenona School!)
(Image from here)

2013 marks the 30th anniversary of ArtExpress at the Art Gallery of NSW. If you haven’t yet made it to the exhibition, you have a few more days to do so. If you’re not in NSW, you can check out the works here.

Andrea Dezsö Makes Me REALLY Appreciate My Mum…

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Andrea Dezsö, Embroidery, Fiber art, Humour, Mothers, Sayings, Visual Art, Visual Arts

Skimpy Bikini by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

It is most unfair that one artist can be so talented across so many disciplines. Andrea Dezsö is a visual artist who works across a broad range of media which includes drawing, artist’s books, cut paper, embroidery, sculpture, site-specific installation, animation and large-scale public art.

I particularly like her ‘Lessons From My Mother’ series where the Transylvanian-born Dezsö has embroidered dozens of her mother’s superstitious sayings. Each of these small pieces includes neatly stitched diagrams and begins with the statement “My mother claimed that…” followed by such homilies as “my sister was a rubber accident.”

I think I should point out that I have only included the PG rated embroidered pieces in the series – there are some that made me gasp. Some of Dezsö’s Mum’s saying are pretty graphic – and certainly made me appreciate my fabulous Mum’s pragmatism and acceptance even more…

What Kind of Man by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Herpes by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Bread by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Rubber Accident by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Wet Hair by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Smart People by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Cat by Andrea Dezsö
Lessons From My Mother series
cotton and metallic floss embroidery on cotton fabric
(Image © Andrea Dezsö)

Dezsö is represented by the Nancy Margolis Gallery in New York, Frey Norris Contemporary & Modern in San Francisco, and Pucker Gallery in Boston. If you’d like to check out the R rated versions of her ‘Lessons From My Mother ‘, or see some of other work, check out her website here.

Love Lace – Make Lace Not War

Tags

Arts, Australia, community, Crafts, creativity, culture, Design, Exhibition, Fibre Art, Lace, lace exhibition, Powerhouse Museum, style, Surface Design, Sydney, Textile, Travel, Visual Art

'Shadows of Memory' by Michele Eastwood
Materials: Textiles. Close weave calico laser cut into silhouettes, which are backed onto a dissolvable fabric and the fine threads are couched, holding the figures in space.

I know, I know – yesterday I talked about the ArtExpress exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.  Today I’m bringing you news of another exhibition, this time at the Powerhouse Museum.  What can I tell you? – I’m mining a theme. I’ve also had visitors from New Zealand staying.  You may get more of the same tomorrow!

The Love Lace exhibition is an impressive show of 130 Lace Works by 134 artists from 20 different countries. Each artist displays their passion for lace in this beautiful (if a little dark) exhibition of winning entries and finalists in the Powerhouse Museum International Lace Award.

To be honest, I had read about the Love Lace exhibition and, despite a keen interest in surface design and fibre art, wasn’t that motivated to go and see it. Well, I was pleased to be proved wrong. It is well worth a visit. The works are amazing, and my wee nephew even got to make slime from scratch as part of the school holiday programme. 

I am loving this renaissance of traditional arts and crafts with a modern interpretation.

'Nanduti Lace' by Griselda Gonzales
Materials: Linen needlework lace

'White Guilt' by Ashley Shepherd
Materials: Cotton, machine embroidered onto water-soluble fabric and burnt with incense sticks

'Collar of Petrified Lace' by Wendy Ramshaw
Materials: cut stainless steel, powder coated

Front: 'Intersect' by Tania Spencer
Materials: Knitted galvanised wire using s spinning ginny, fencing tools, pliers and bolt cutters. The wire is hand bent around the jig and then woven together.
Back: 'Lace Fence' by Joep Verhoeven
Materials: Bobbin lace technique using galvanised steel wire, fabricated in Bangalore, India

The Love Lace exhibition runs at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney until April 2013.

If you don’t live in Sydney, you can check out the Love Lace exhibition online at the Powerhouse Museum Website (here). Alternatively, another great reason for you to come and visit!

Sydney-siders, get thee to ArtExpress 2012…

Tags

Art, Art exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, ArtExpress, Australia, community, creativity, culture, Galleries, Higher School Certificate, Illustration, Sydney, Travel, Visual Art

Part of 'Flourish' by Hanna Clements of Sydney Girls High School
Expressive form: Sculpture

If you live in Sydney and have yet to see the ArtExpress 2012 exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, you have just one week before it’s too late. It is well worth a special trip to the Art Gallery just to see this wonderful exhibition. Trust me on this.

ArtExpress is the annual exhibition of outstanding student artworks developed for the art making component of the Higher School Certificate examination in Visual Arts for 2011. So, for the uninitiated – the artists who make up this exhibition are school students of around 17 years of age, give or take a year.

Every year I am blown away by the artistic talent we have bubbling away within our secondary schools. Have a taster…

'A Collection of Post Cards from Wits End' by Lisa Koesterke of Mullumbimby High School
Expressive form: Collection of works

'A Collection of Post Cards from Wits End' (Detail) by Lisa Koesterke

'Healthy Living' by Anna Zhong of James Ruse Agricultural High School
Expressive form: Painting

'Stigmata' by Georgia McGlennon of Ascham School
Expressive form: Photomedia

'...a thousand words' by Christopher Fiorini of St Patrick's College, Strathfield
Expressive form: Photomedia

ArtExpress is a free exhibition and will be on show at the Art Gallery of New South Wales until Sunday, 22 April 2012.

(All images sourced from here)