Oil on canvas. 9 x 12 in.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Pam Davison, Ron Smooker
There's a gallery opening of two exhibitions at Photonet Gallery in Fairfield.
'the past walks noiselessly' by Davison, and 'Pere Lachaise' by Smooker.
Davison's black & white photos are very touching reflections on the loss, death and memories of her family.
The use of doll house and miniature daily objects, coupled with clever blurring and focus in images, succeed beautifully in creating visual stories.
Smooker's poetic installation traces the similar trajectory.
I liked his poems a lot. Very poignant thoughts on life and death, expressed beautifully.
Here is from 'On learning of the Death of Jamie Ross'
Time is the only gift in the world
Until we have no time
Your quiet tread on death's dark stairway
Was my gift
A wake up call on a crowded train
In the gallery, there's a cellist called Adi Sappir. It was a beautiful piece of music, generating wonderful space and time.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Marco Luccio interview on 2RRR in Sydney
Melbourne artist talks about his new exhibition 'New York Found, Images Inspired by the Met'.
I saw this exhibition in Melbourne, attending to his talk as well.
Powerful and beautiful images of Big Apple.
This radio interview is very inspiring.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Oil Painting
Oil on canvas. 9 x 12 in.
Oil on canvas. 9 x 12 in.
Can't get it right. Leave it for now :(
Nillumbik Prize at Montsalvat
Glorious winter morning at Montsalvat. One of my favourite places in Melbourne.
There're some works I liked in this exhibition.
My favourite Marco Luccio. And, Faye Alexander Jenkins, Emmy Mavroidis, Christine Johnson.
Marco's etching works are really strong, but at the same time, very soft, due to his clever use of colour.
Johnson's big oil painting is beautiful. It reminds me of Richter's hyper realistic works.
There's another exhibition at Long Gallery.
Barbara Hauser's powerful paintings are a bit of visual cacophony.
Sunday, July 22, 2012
TED Talk by Neil Harbisson "I listen to colour"
Fascinating talk.
It makes me rethink the notion of our perception, power of senses and use of technology.
It makes me rethink the notion of our perception, power of senses and use of technology.
And, of course, creativity.
Oil Painting
Looks like she's got burned on her neck :(
It's supposed to be a strong shadow.
I'll work on it later.
Read more »
It's supposed to be a strong shadow.
I'll work on it later.
Oil on canvas. 9 x 12 in.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Friday, July 20, 2012
Napoleon, Sugimoto exhibition at NGV
Spent a whole day at NGV.
I usually join a free tour so that I can get more background information of an exhibition.
Today's tour guide ("Wynona"?) was fabulous. She spent two hours with us, offering a wide variety of stories behind the exhibits.
My knowledge of French Revolution and Napoleon was very limited, so this exhibition gives me a good understanding of this exciting time in history.
I particularly liked how France and Australia were connected by the turn of events during this time.
For example, French man Baudin arrived at Encounter Bay only three days after Flinders.
Australia could have been colonised by the French, and we might have been speaking French now. Well, a great opportunity was missed!!
And, Josephine kept kangaroos, black swans and emus at Malmaison.
This is a great exhibition, with great paintings by David and others, and all sorts of glitzy paraphernalia.
I also loved meticulous drawings of Australian flora and fauna, and indigenous people.
The best exhibit was, I must say, 'Nipple Cup with Tripod". It's very Frenchy and kitsch. Whether or not it was designed according to Josephine's is debatable, I was told.
I usually join a free tour so that I can get more background information of an exhibition.
Today's tour guide ("Wynona"?) was fabulous. She spent two hours with us, offering a wide variety of stories behind the exhibits.
My knowledge of French Revolution and Napoleon was very limited, so this exhibition gives me a good understanding of this exciting time in history.
I particularly liked how France and Australia were connected by the turn of events during this time.
For example, French man Baudin arrived at Encounter Bay only three days after Flinders.
Australia could have been colonised by the French, and we might have been speaking French now. Well, a great opportunity was missed!!
And, Josephine kept kangaroos, black swans and emus at Malmaison.
This is a great exhibition, with great paintings by David and others, and all sorts of glitzy paraphernalia.
I also loved meticulous drawings of Australian flora and fauna, and indigenous people.
The best exhibit was, I must say, 'Nipple Cup with Tripod". It's very Frenchy and kitsch. Whether or not it was designed according to Josephine's is debatable, I was told.
There was a film screening at the auditorium.
'Hiroshi Sugimoto - Visions in my mind' is a superb documentary of this renowned Japanese photographer.
I always like his black & white photos, they're all very sublime, lyrical images. Beautiful.
His photo is exhibited in a photography room, along with some Bill Henson, but, this space is depressingly tiny. NGV should have another building dedicated to photography, I think.
Here are some of his works.
It seems NGV shifted some of contemporary paintings from top floor to one level below.
And here it is! Warhol and Rothko side by side. This is disgraceful. Rothko would have been furious if he saw this.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Metro Art Award
This year's $50,000 prize was given to Natasha Bieniek.
'Keepsake' is really tiny, measuring only 10 x 25 cm. It's an incredible achievement, creating a fascinating portrait in such a small space, sucking viewers into the work, like a magic.
I first saw her work at last year's Archibald, and she was a finalist this year, too.
Apparently, we're seeing an emergence of this highly talented artist.
I also liked Ben Howe, 'INTERMISSION'. I saw his paintings before, and always loved his vision.
This one reminds me of Gerhard Richter's 'Grey Painting' series.
Then I started wandering around Toorak and Richmond area, popping in and out of some galleries.
Carbon Black Gallery
Irene Salmont's drawings 'Beneath Clouds' are delicate line works. She is a finalist of this year's Rick Amor Drawing Prize. Quite understandable after seeing her works.
I had a good chat with her.
Helen Gory Gallery
"Watching, Not Looking" by Robyn Burgess is a collection of monumental paintings from New York.
They're huge and powerful oil paintings, and I loved them all.
Anita Traverso Gallery
'Hardly seen; Only felt' by Ebony Addinsall is a collection of glass works. They're very delicate and architectural. Also somehow meditative. Beautiful design.
Nellie Castan Gallery
This gallery has a big open space, but hard to find. Thanks to 'Arts View: Melbourne' iPhone App, I managed to make it :)
'Future Proof' by Darren Wardle. Described as 'sci-fi dystopia', his colourful works evoke futuristic urban landscape. I like them all.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Oil Painting
Oil on canvas. 8 x 10 in. July 18, 2012.
Oil on canvas. 8 x 16 in. July 18, 2012.
Jeff Makin
A day after Fred Williams, it's interesting to see the contrast between him and Jeff Makin, both used to paint together.
Jeff is a father of the owner of James Makin Gallery in Fitzroy.
This collection of paintings are the landscape of Grampians.
His landscape paintings are "portraits of these iconic Victorian natural features."
His distilled shapes of geometry, and bright colours..... I like them.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Fred Williams
There're some artists whose works seem to have instant magnetic attractions, pulling me towards them.
He is one such artist.
Today is my second viewing of this great Australian painter at NGV Federation Square.
It's a fascinating retrospective from his early days to the untimely death.
There's a plethora of great paintings here.
Figurative works, gum trees, bush fires, ponds, billabongs, waterfalls, waterscapes, beaches, red earth....
This is a man who were completely in tune with Australian landscape, and had a brilliance of capturing them in the form of paintings.
'Fred Williams - Infinite Horizons' is a great catalogue of this well-organised exhibition.
Reading through this, I admire even more his tenacious focus on his work, his energy and his love for nature.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Sunday, July 15, 2012
The Importance of Being Earnest
With rapid fire sarcasms, wicked social remarks and twisted moral hypocrisies, this play by Oscar Wilde is definitely one of my favourites. It's always a delightful experience to be in a theatre, watching a fascinating production.
This time again, The Heidelberg Theatre Company is offering us a great opportunity to savour this satirical masterpiece.
Algernon:
“All women become like their mothers.
That is their tragedy.
No man does.
That’s his.”
Friday, July 13, 2012
Gerhard Richter
Four books from Book Depository.
He is one of my favourite contemporary artists alive. 'Contemporary' is, in his case, a slightly misguided word.
His focus is always painting, which has quite a long history. It's a traditional medium.
However, his works are extremely modern. I sometimes wonder why.
I think the reason is, the fact that he is a living artist, breathing the same air as we breathe, experiencing what's happening in the world at this time in history.
And he has this extraordinary visual creativity to be able to transform them into a piece of art.
At the end of the day, paint and brush are just tools to express our inner feelings. Paintings can be old-fashioned, or, can be modern.
What he demonstrates clearly is, as he once took on Duchamp, it's not dead yet.
He is one of my favourite contemporary artists alive. 'Contemporary' is, in his case, a slightly misguided word.
His focus is always painting, which has quite a long history. It's a traditional medium.
However, his works are extremely modern. I sometimes wonder why.
I think the reason is, the fact that he is a living artist, breathing the same air as we breathe, experiencing what's happening in the world at this time in history.
And he has this extraordinary visual creativity to be able to transform them into a piece of art.
At the end of the day, paint and brush are just tools to express our inner feelings. Paintings can be old-fashioned, or, can be modern.
What he demonstrates clearly is, as he once took on Duchamp, it's not dead yet.
'Panorama' is a catalogue of the exhibition at Tate Modern. Truly amazing retrospective, spanning well over five decades. Beautiful book that offers a lot of insights of his life and work.
'Portraits' is from the exhibition at National Portrait Gallery. This is a big book. His masterful technique is well documented.
'Portraits' is from the exhibition at National Portrait Gallery. This is a big book. His masterful technique is well documented.
'Large Abstracts' is, well, another big book. Staggering colors, layers upon layers...
Imagine standing in front of these monumental paintings. I particularly like his abstract works.
'Red/Yellow/Blue' is another abstract painting book, focused on the works for the lobby of the BMW headquarters in Munich.
'Details' series is a fascinating visual treat.
