Q&Art is moving house! We’re taking the blog to the Where is the Art site, which is expected to happen in time for the June issue. If you subscribe to us via RSS, email or by carrier pigeon, keep an eye out for how to stay in touch with us. You can always get Q&Art updates on Facebook and Twitter.
- Kim V. Goldsmith
Q&Art Editor
EDITORIAL & INTERVIEWS BY KIM V. GOLDSMITH
Artist, Catherine Ward, who draws on the landscape and seasons of the Southern Tablelands for inspiration (image: K.V.Goldsmith)
When you work in the arts every holiday becomes a working one, be it research (gallery visits), creative inspiration (gallery visits), experimentation or the production of new work (spending sunny days outdoors soaking up the atmosphere). So it was when my family made our annual trek south to the coast for Easter, coincidentally coinciding with Where is the Art‘s recent expansion into the Southern Tablelands.
The journey south and home again takes one through the heart of the Southern Tablelands Arts (STARTS) region, passing through Crookwell, Goulburn, Braidwood, Queanbeyan and Yass. Over 10 days I had the pleasure of meeting some of the Southern Tableland’s most creative movers and shakers, who extended their hospitality to my family and I with great generosity. We enjoyed long lunches, BBQs and a few drinks and quick chats during installations.
On our way south, we stopped for lunch with Binda (near Crookwell) artist, Catherine Ward and her family, where I was privileged to see the space in which she creates waxy, textural landscapes that capture the light and seasons of her surrounds. Next stop – Goulburn. We made it to the city just in time to see the installation of Sensorial Loop 1st Tamworth Textile Triennial 2011 (from Tamworth Regional Gallery) at Goulburn Regional Art Gallery (GRAG) and a quick chat with director, Jane Cush.
From GRAG we made our way to the railway tracks where we had been invited to a BBQ with the volunteers and tradespeople who have helped bring to life old railway barracks as a new community cultural space, Gallery on Track – an initiative of Goulburn and District Arts and Crafts Inc. (GDAC). GDAC members are amateurs and professionals across a broad range of art and craft mediums, including knitting, woodworking, jewellery-making, textiles, painting and sculpting. There are currently 80 plus members with the expectation of signing up 200-300 members in the next 12 months.
GDAC members celebrating the renovation of Gallery on Track, Goulburn (image: K.V. Goldsmith)
GDAC secretary, Robyn Primrose has overseen the renovation of the space. As project manager she has hired the tradies and administered the grants. Her vision is to have the space full of people every day doing creative work – both inside and out in the sculpture garden.
While running a volunteer-based organisation is always difficult in terms of finding enough bodies who want to do the work, Robyn expects this will get easier, with the new space providing a source of energy to GDAC. With the smell of new paint and freshly oiled floors still strong, Robyn and acting president, Doug McIntyre took time out during the celebratory BBQ to talk about their plans for the space.
Gallery on Track drivers Robyn Primrose and Doug McIntyre (image: K.V. Goldsmith)
CONVERSATION WITH ROBYN PRIMROSE & DOUG MCINTYRE: (DUR: 6.19)
Not long after this interview was recorded Robyn proudly announced the Occupation Certificate had been granted.
After a week of coastal relaxation and some creative time for myself it was time to head inland again for the day, to Queanbeyan to catch up with The Artists Shed‘s Dennis Mortimer – a man with some big visions and strong ideas about the importance and role of art in our society and culture.
The Artists Shed, Queanbeyan
The Artists Shed is indeed a shed, nestled within the industrial area off the Yass Road in Queanbeyan. It’s a loosely modelled artist-run-initiative; the space itself is a warren of studios, exhibition and workshop spaces, communal areas and art supplies. It is also home to The Photography Room.
Dennis has been at The Artists Shed for nine years, joining up with artist, Margaret Hadfield who had been there for 16 years up until last year. It simply started as studio spaces for Dennis and Margaret, however, it morphed organically from studio spaces into the mix of spaces present today, also encompassing the artforms of music and theatre.
The Artists Shed has evolved, shaped by who is working in the space at the time. As Dennis says, there is no hierarchy at The Artists Shed (of people or artform), but for the time being, Dennis is what he calls “the driver”. That doesn’t mean an artist will be driving the space in the future, it could be a musician, giving the space a broader relevance in the cultural scene of Queanbeyan.
Artist, Dennis Mortimer of The Artists Shed, Queanbeyan (image: K.V. Goldsmith)
CONVERSATION WITH DENNIS MORTIMER: (DUR: 10.20 )
Grab a glass of red to enjoy while you listen to this interview!
A recommendation from Dennis took us to Benedict House, where I met Kate Shelton. She has brought together her artistic passions into a multi-faceted business incorporating food, art, beading and the recent launch of a book. Queanbeyan was starting to give a great vibe and the food at Benedict House was a highlight of the entire holiday!
On the way back to the coast we called in on FyreGallery at Braidwood, a commercial gallery in the care of Cheryl Hannah. Opening in 2005, FyreGallery exhibits twice yearly – March/April and November/December. We were lucky enough to catch the nostalgic READING THE WALLS: AUSTRALIAN AND INTERNATIONAL POSTERS IN THE AGE BEFORE TWITTER® – Australian and International posters from the collection of Josef Lebovic.
FyreGallery, Braidwood – can you spot the photographer?! (image: K.V. Goldsmith)
After a few more days of R&R it was time to head home, but not without a stop in Yass to meet the drivers of YASSarts. Yass-based artist, Kim Nelson organised a meeting on the upstairs verandah of his mainstreet studio, with fellow YASSarts members, Col Nelson and Al Phemister. It was interesting to hear about the number of artists who are part of this arts-inclusive group covering literature, film, music, performing and visual arts. However, one of the attention-grabbing things about this group is the number of artists listed on the Visual Arts page of the YASSarts website – impressive for a town with a population of just over 5,000.
This working holiday was one of the most memorable in terms of how energising the conversations and interactions were with everyone I met. The sharing of ideas, visions and interests; along with a feeling of being part of a bigger dialogue and program of activities has confirmed the decision to take Where is the Art south as being very sound!
YASSarts members, Col Nelson, Al Phemister & Kim Nelson on the steps of Kim’s studio gallery in Yass’ mainstreet (image: K.V. Goldsmith)
My thanks to Catherine Ward and her family, Jane Cush, Robyn Primrose, Doug McIntyre (and the GDAC volunteers who shared their celebration dinner), Dennis Mortimer, Kate Shelton, Cheryl Hannah, Kim Nelson, Col Nelson and Al Phemister – for your generosity, hospitality and time.
Catherine Ward, Goulburn & District Arts & Crafts Inc., YASSarts and The Artists Shed are listed on Where is the Art.
This trip was fully funded by the author.
Photos by MARYANNE JAQUES
Co-isolated was recently shown (14 - 17 April) at Wentworth Mine, Lucknow (near Orange) as an exhibition of new work by Richard Goodwin, Michael Snape, and David Burns. It was sponsored by Orange Regional Gallery and curated by ORG director, Alan Sisley. This was its second outing, having previously been shown in April 2010 at South Sydney Corporate Park, Alexandria (NSW) where it was curated by Tarsha Finney and the artists.
Maryanne Jaques went along to Co-isolated during its installation at Lucknow, capturing the exhibition for Q&Art.
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Professor Richard Goodwin is an internationally exhibited artist and architect with a cross-disciplinary practice spanning 35 years. Michael Snape has worked as a sculptor for the last 40 years. David Burns is an artist and architect, creating objects and spaces that manipulate perception through designed indeterminacy.
Maryanne JAQUES is the Communications Officer with Arts OutWest.
…about the practices and ideas driving some of the artists who choose to live and work in regional NSW.
Julie Williams, 4 video stills from new work to be exhibited in Sydney in late June. At the time of publishing the work was untitled. The exhibition will be at Syndicate on Danks, 25 June – 17 July. (Images courtesy the artist)
Due to technical issues we can’t create a hyperlink to Julie’s website – the address is www.juliewilliams.net.au
Q&Art: What made you want to be an artist and what pathways did you take to make this happen?
I grew up in Muswellbrook in the Hunter Valley and as a young child I drew and painted every day as it was just a natural instinct to do that.
I was either riding my horse or alone in my room painting pictures and listening to music. I loved Visual Art at high school, and being introduced to art history added another dimension. Looking at artworks then however was confined to mostly black and white, small reproductions in art history books. There was no internet in those days and growing up in a country town being exposed to work by practicing artists was limited. However we did have the Muswellbrook Regional Gallery and I remember seeing a large expressive Dale Frank drawing in the late 70′s. That still lingers in my mind today. After Year 12 I went to Art School in Sydney .
Q&Art: What are some of the challenges you have faced, or continue to face, in realising your vision as an artist?
The biggest challenge I faced early on was lacking confidence to be an artist. I burned inside with the desire to create art but when I started at art school I was too frightened to produce it. The city was daunting and the large art classes full of confident, motivated, colourful people. I just froze. That was why I had first enrolled in the Art teaching course as I didn’t think I was good enough to be an artist. I persevered though and after three years at art school something shifted and I transferred out of teaching into the Bachelor of Arts. It’s been a long process and lots of life experience to sort that demon.
Q&Art: How did you arrive at the mediums you use in your practice today?
In my foundation year at art school in a painting class a cool, male student came up behind me and started laughing over my shoulder while he looked at the painting I was working on. It was one of those shattering, humiliating moments you don’t forget. I fled to the photography department and never painted at art school again. That was when I fell in love with the camera. It got me out into the city exploring day and night away from the confines of the studio spaces. I was eventually drawn to the ocean and the nature of Centennial Park near where I lived. I did a lot of self portraiture, double exposures and long exposures with moving light at night. I also ventured into film and video.
Q&Art: What concepts or external influences do you work with in your practice?
Feelings and emotions dominate. Creating art is my whole world and recent work has been a direct response to loss and grief. I venture into nature with my camera and am really looking for a landscape to disappear into. I have found flowing water captures light and takes it me on a journey with my photographs being pure waterscapes. These appear as unanchored landscapes that sit somewhere on the path toward the infinite and sublime. The sense of awe we get from nature is powerful and I look to capture this within my photographs.
Q&Art: How do the mediums you use help you to communicate the concepts you work with?
Water for me is a universal metaphor for the passage of time, death and renewal. Photography captures moments and freezes them. As a photographer we get to choose the length of time of that moment by selecting a shutter speed on the camera. I choose long exposures as one speck of light, given enough time to move through the frame, will create a brushstroke of light. Like a painter at work, many brushstrokes create the image. I don’t manipulate these waterscapes digitally but capture the imagery at the time of pressing the shutter button on the camera. When I do video work and am in the editing phase I slow the motion down and watch new worlds unfold…it’s haunting and beautiful.
Q&Art: What defines success for you as an artist?
Success is when I have created a body artwork that moves me, but it is also resonates with other people. There are many distractions in the world that can colour and direct the art one makes. For me, I keep focussed on creating work that I want to see and feel in the world and if I’m true to myself it speaks volumes to others.
Q&Art: What are some of the issues you believe impact on your practice and vision as an artist?
A low income is a big issue affecting most artists and I feel that pressure constantly but you do learn to live with that. Having to take on work in areas not related to my art practice is not ideal as it takes my focus elsewhere and really disrupts the flow of creating artwork.
Q&Art: How important is contact with other artists to you and your practice?
Being an artist for me is solitary in the larger part and that is essential and I love that time. My work wouldn’t evolve otherwise. But I find it necessary to get some feedback from fellow artists and friends during the process. Usually when I have gleaned a set of images from masses of photos is the right time for that. It does require a fine balance though as outside input at the wrong moment can occasionally have a negative impact. Now with changing technology being relied upon there are also periods of interacting more with other practitioners in certain stages of production.
Q&Art: Is the gallery sector (commercial and non-commercial) important to you, or are there other opportunities you have been able to take advantage of to develop your practice and exhibit your work?
Showing ones work is necessary and galleries are important for this. I also need to visit galleries regularly to look at the work of other artists. There is something so wonderful about entering a physical space and finding artwork that is moving and inspirational. Regional galleries in particular usually have a number of artists exhibiting at the same time and bring travelling shows from other areas as well as exhibiting regional artists. I have a website online and have work on other online sources. The web is fantastic especially for regional people who can’t get to many galleries but I think one needs to be in the physical presence to really feel the work and I don’t think that will ever change.
Q&Art: Finally, what has been one of the most memorable or defining moments in your career as an artist?
About five years ago I discovered breathtaking images in my camera after a visit to a local river where I had sat on a pink granite boulder with my lens zoomed in on an expanse of flowing water. That was the start of this new direction in my art practice. There is an endless source of inspiration and imagery at that place still to continue working with into the future.
Julie will be exhibiting at Syndicate on Danks, 25 June – 17 July.
…about the practices and ideas driving some of the artists who choose to live and work in regional NSW.
Joy Engelman, LAND / FLOODING, acrylic on canvas, 30cm x 30cm (image: courtesy the artist)
Q&Art: What made you want to be an artist and what pathways did you take to make this happen?
I have always painted, from when I was a little girl. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to paint. As a teenager, I thought of maybe being an artist or a racing car driver, but also wanted desperately to be a quantum physicist. Quantum maths beat me as I couldn’t quite get my head around the complexity; racing driver didn’t ever seem to come my way, so artist it is….. but then, it wasn’t ever meant to be anything else or I would have decided on lesser career objectives. Through my teen years, I attended Orange TAFE Art Classes and later, I went to Charles Sturt Uni and did a Diploma of Creative Arts Course. Art has turned out to be just as challenging as the others would have been, I feel.
Q&Art: What are some of the challenges you have faced, or continue to face, in realising your vision as an artist?
I call it ‘artus interuptus’! Being a woman in the arts is hard in so many ways – first there’s the idea that you’re just a hobbyist as a woman, where men are often seen to be pursuing ‘art as work’ – or this is the way it is has been in the past (we can’t judge the future yet). Secondly, there is the role of being wife and mother. Your biological drives take you on other paths from time to time. Third, there is the need to earn ‘real’ money and not the intermittent flow that we find artists trying to survive on, so the push to find a ‘real job’ takes your attention away as well. Then fourth, there’s the studio – what studio?! I have painted on kitchen tables, dining room tables, laundries, out of cupboards – you name it – there was a time when I did have a purpose-built studio for a number of years and it was heaven. Thankfully, I now have found that again in Colour City Creatives! To last in the arts, you need to be able to overcome many challenges, constantly reinvent yourself and find ways forward. I have noted that many artists start out well but rarely last longer than five years. There are very few of us that have painted for over 30 years especially in a ‘short attention span’ society where everyone is looking for something ‘new’.
Q&Art: How did you arrive at the mediums you use in your practice today?
In my teens, I painted in oils on board as it was the way you learnt to paint at TAFE but in my 20′s I started to pursue watercolours as I loved the transparency of the medium. I also enjoyed the difficulty and challenge of watercolours. It is hard to beat a beautiful work on cotton rag paper with its deckle edge showing – all framed up in a pristine frame……It looks like a real work of art – a treasure – but modernity demands that I work on canvas as it is the thing that current trends lean to. So several years ago I started to extend into acrylics, but using them with watercolour medium and working in layers of transparent washes. I still work this way today whether on paper or canvas – it adds a mystical quality to the work.
Q&Art: What concepts or external influences do you work with in your practice?
I have always been fascinated with finding order within chaos (quantum principles) and so I like to look at the underlying forces within a subject. I often start with a chaotic and seemingly meaningless layer and then find the meaning contained within, or alternatively I impose a pattern on the underlying randomness. I have two favourite themes; the forest and the mapping of the landscape from an aerial perspective – both are chaotic in nature. I am not drawn to realist painters or their works with their ‘colonial’ view of the land but prefer the disorder of painters like Robert Juniper – the rather 70′s post modernist perspective. I think of myself as a contemporary landscape painter but only others can judge that. I like the disorder of the Australian landscape and the random and chaotic way it is formed – it is the oldest exposed landscape in the world and has a completely different character to other countries, a character which has largely been ignored by the settlers – I like the way the Australian landscape overcomes attempts to tame it.
Q&Art: How do the mediums you use help you to communicate the concepts you work with?
I am able to show the different layers within a work through the use of transparent washes over free and unformed layers of paint and inks. By mixing different mediums, I can build a randomness that doesn’t come through using only one type of paint. It is the chemical reactions of the various mediums that create the disorder that I require for the underlying chaos of the work. The randomness of the various interactions of the paints creates the energy of growth, and the play of light that I am looking for in a work. I also aim to produce works that cannot be readily photographed and reproduced digitally or otherwise. This makes it hard to document the works accurately but retains the individuality and ‘one-off value’ of the work.
Q&Art: What defines success for you as an artist?
To be able to get artworks out there and looked at, find viewers who understand what it is you are trying to say and have the conversation. To be able to do this for a lifetime is fantastic! So many people feel that they aren’t heard, that their opinion and ideas don’t count; for an artist to be ‘heard’ and ‘understood’ is the greatest success.
Q&Art: What are some of the issues you believe impact on your practice and vision as an artist?
The Australian arts industry is in its infancy, indeed, it is just a couple of hundred years old and it will take some time before there is the same wide acceptance and understanding of arts practices that we find in other countries with more richly developed cultures.
But at the same time, there is a huge opportunity for us as artists to shape the future culture of Australia.
There is not the depth of museums, collections and love of history here yet to support the arts in the way that more developed cultures have. Hence there is little understanding of the value of arts as an underpinning to culture here yet.
These comments might not apply to indigenous art, which is a whole other discussion.
Q&Art: How important is contact with other artists to you and your practice?
Being an artist is by its very nature quite a solo practice however, it is wonderful to be able to have creative friends to bounce ideas, just talk ‘rubbish’ to and field a few jokes with. Like anyone, artists need the ‘mirror’ that another provides and we find our best ‘selves’ through the eyes of another artist.
Q&Art: Is the gallery sector (commercial and non-commercial) important to you, or are there other opportunities you have been able to take advantage of to develop your practice and exhibit your work?
I think the whole system is important in its entirety and as it is developed currently. I would like to see more galleries, especially commercial galleries up and operating. Over the past 35 years, I have exhibited in many well-respected galleries with some wonderful directors, but galleries and directors come and go as fast as artists do. I feel it is more important to follow the artist rather than a particular gallery.
One of the things that has destroyed the arts industry has been the focus of directors looking for the next ‘big thing’ and not paying attention to the longevity and curriculum vitae of an artist. We lost our way in Australia about 15 years or so ago with a culture of throw away and being ‘thrilled’! We entered a vacuous cycle in the arts. I would like to see more emphasis on collecting current ‘cultural’ and important works from the local area in the regional galleries as an input to history. I would like to see more historical recording of artists, their works, philosophies and lives being undertaken as part of Australia’s history.
Personally, I use the internet a lot. I have had opportunities from overseas through the internet along with recognition and the ability to build a network across the world. This has been important for me and has led me to expand my sense of self rather than become increasingly isolated within a ‘sports mad’ community.
Q&Art: Finally, what has been one of the most memorable or defining moments in your career as an artist?
Being invited to participate in the Biennale dell art’e di contemporanea in Firenze Italy in 2007. Getting to Firenze with my work and then winning fifth place for paintings out of 2500 artworks from around the world. As one fellow said on my return “Not bad for a girl from the bush!”.
The other defining moment was my retrospective (survey) at the Orange Regional Gallery at the end of 2010 – this was a landmark that helped me define who I am in so many ways and put to bed some of the past.
Colour City Creatives is listed on the Groups page of Where is the Art.
Photo: Ben Storrier
Alan Jones is an artist with a studio space in Alexandria, in inner Sydney.
In May 2011 he joined 12 other artists for two weeks at the University of NSW Arid Zone Research Station at Fowlers Gap, 90 minutes from Broken Hill. Sponsored by Artist Profile in conjunction with Winsor & Newton, the trip was called Not the Way Home. The outcomes of which will be shown in an exhibition schedule due to start next month and set to run until early 2013 (ending at the New England Regional Art Museum in Armidale, NSW).
The expedition into the Far West of NSW was daunting for Alan on a couple of fronts – he was working alongside the likes of Guy Warren, Elisabeth Cummings, Euan Macleod and others who not only have decades of experience, but are very comfortable in the landscape. This arid landscape was foreign to him, describing it as akin to being “on the moon”. Not that Alan is inexperienced by any means, with a CV showing a 15 year history packed with solo and group exhibitions, prize wins and scholarships. It is just that these experiences did not prepare him for an environment of extremes, which removed him from his comfort zone.
Three weeks out from opening an exhibition at Gallery Ecosse at Exeter in the Southern Highlands, Alan Jones spoke with Q&Art’s Kim V. Goldsmith about the experience and the impact it has had on his practice.
CONVERSATION WITH ALAN JONES (DUR: 8.21)
Recent paintings and drawings, showing at Gallery Ecosse, 14 April – 10 May 2012.
Alan heads to the UK later this month to The Ropewalk Arts Centre, Barton Upon Humber, North Lincolnshire before returning to Sydney for a major solo show at Watters Gallery in November.
Alan Jones appears courtesy of Watters Gallery, Sydney
Alan Jones, Painting 92, 2012, acrylic on canvas, 122 x 90cm (Image courtesy of the artist, Gallery Ecosse & Watters Gallery. Image copyright the artist.)
Q&Art is published by Where is the Art: an online directory of artists and galleries living and working in the creative centre of NSW.
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Donald Friend, Hill End, 1948, watercolour, ink and gouache (Image: Maryanne Jaques/Arts OutWest)
MARYANNE JAQUES/Arts OutWest
The Bathurst community has the opportunity to bring home an important piece of Hill End’s art history.
Bathurst Regional Art Gallery (BRAG) was recently offered an unexpected opportunity to purchase a major work by major Australian artist Donald Friend (1915-1989). The work would be central to the Hill End focus of the Gallery’s permanent collection. With almost half the funds donated by the Gallery Society, the community are being asked to help get the fundraising over the line.
The work, simply entitled Hill End, is a beautiful and understated watercolour, ink and gouache landscape of the village of Hill End in 1948, a landscape still marked by the gold rush.
The artwork was originally owned by the late David Wynn AO of Adelaide’s Wynn wine fame and is in impeccable condition. The gallery has been offered the work for $33,000, which Bathurst Regional Art Gallery Director Richard Perram says is a very reasonable price for such an important piece.
“The Bathurst Regional Art Gallery Society (BRAGS) has unanimously agreed to start the fundraising efforts with $14,000,” says Perram.
The painting was loaned to the gallery for three days (16 – 18 March) and was on display alongside the exhibition Hill End 1851 to 2011: From the Permanent Collection. It hung alongside other works by Friend from his time painting in Hill End. A full-scale photograph of the picture will be displayed for the remainder of the exhibition.
“There are a few works in this collection which are absolutely pivotal – this is one” said Richard Perram.
The 1948 work would become the earliest in the collection from Donald Friend’s time in Hill End. He arrived in 1947 and left in 1951. “This is his impression from within the first year of his arrival, right at the time that this group of artists were discovering the town” says Perram. “Having this work in the collection would mean we have a range of Friend’s work from the whole period of his time there.”
The town also attracted artists such as Russell Drysdale, Margaret Olley, Jeffery Smart, Brett Whitely, John Olsen and Jean Bellette – many of whose works also form part of the gallery’s Artists of Hill End To The Present Collection.
“It is very rare for a work of this quality to come on the market and it would be regrettable if the Gallery were not able to raise the necessary funds,” says Perram.
The gallery is calling for to community to help BRAGS purchase the work. Any sized donation is welcome and all donations over $2 are tax deductible. Contact the gallery on 02 6333 6555.
The exhibition Hill End 1851 to 2011: From the Permanent Collection runs until 29 April.
Joy Engelman
Orange based artists, Joy Engelman and Wanda Driscoll are the driving forces behind the Autumn Art School in Orange, which started five years ago. This year’s event saw about 50 students spend two days under the tutelage of professional artists such as Ross Kurtz (acrylics), John Wilson (oils), Robert Keen (pastels), as well as Joy (watercolour) and Wanda (mixed media).
The idea was to bring artists together into one space where they could interact with each other under the guidance of professional artists, encouraging new people to have a go at art without having to commit to something longer-term, such as a TAFE course. They have found people come from across the Central West and Sydney to attend the school, with many returning each year.
Wanda Driscoll
Joy and Wanda explain to Q&Art’s Kim V. Goldsmith where the school fits into the spectrum of art education. Joy Engelman includes an explanation of why teaching under a “master” is perhaps a more valid way of learning about art than being taught by a “teacher”, and how important “brush miles” are to producing good work.
CONVERSATION WITH JOY ENGELMAN AND WANDA DRISCOLL (DUR: 10.24)
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Anyone interested in finding out more about the Autumn Art School or the proposed Spring Art School can contact Wanda Driscoll on 02 6362 0708.
Have you attended an art school in the region? What sort of experience was it? Was it/is it important to your development as an artist?
…about the practices and ideas driving some of the artists who choose to live and work in regional NSW.
Q&Art: What made you want to be an artist and what pathways did you take to make this happen?
DM: I never thought of myself as an artist or not an artist. I’ve always made stuff, intrigued by the inherent language of objects and imagery. My work is mainly narrative, the traditions of which go back to cave and body painting. I’ve been exhibiting since I was 13. I attended Moss Vale TAFE (painting and drawing), Canberra School of Art, Glasgow School of Art and I’m now studying Liberal Arts (visual culture) at the ANU.
Q&Art: What are some of the challenges you have faced, or continue to face, in realising your vision as an artist?
DM: The biggest challenge of course is financial, or perhaps equally, is the general public’s perception of art as decoration (visual) or entertainment (theatre). That art is a language seems lost on most people. I don’t know that I have a vision as an artist, there are a stack of visual projects I have in mind, it’s just my work. Perhaps education of the general public through participation in the arts is an ideal I pursue; the closest thing I have to a vision.
It’ll be good when the term ‘I know nothing about art but know what I like’ is no longer heard. A major problem in this country, except for Aboriginal art, is the lack of folk art. Folk art is the well-spring of art and the public understanding of their art. Unfortunately the settler/Colonials chose to leave their minds in Europe in their art practices, denying an opportunity to plant seeds in the fertile expressive culture of the Aboriginal people, that may have developed into a rich inclusive folk art. That legacy lives on.
Dennis Mortimer, Your Gods Are Crying, oil, acrylic & graphite, 100cm x 750cm (Image courtesy of the artist)
Q&Art: How did you arrive at the mediums you use in your practice today?
DM: The visual language I use in communicating my subject dictates the mediums and materials I use. For example, in an installation for a recent environmental series titled Silent Canary, I placed glass frogs in LED bags, in another series titled Ambiguity of Identity I mounted 100 photos on a wardrobe mirror; in both works the inherent language of the materials, imagery and mediums combine to induce a narrative.
In painting I use house paints, acrylics, oils, inks, ochres, dry pigments, wax, bitumen, graphite, charcoal, coloured pencils, acrylic polymers and a pile of other stuff used in various combinations, arrived at through experimenting. A project I have in mind (a return to a work I did years ago) is making stuff from discarded materials from building sites and suburban clean up days; documenting the process and outcomes (maybe keep a few pieces) – by chance is the way I’ll arrive at the mediums in that project.
Q&Art: What concepts or external influences do you work with in your practice?
DM: My work is mostly informed by social, environmental and human rights issues underpinned by formal concepts of composition (abstract).
Q&Art: How do the mediums you use help you to communicate the concepts you work with?
DM: Formal concepts in design, composition, structure and form are relevant in 2D or 3D regardless of the medium. Physical properties of mediums are important in mark-making, textures, gloss – flat, colour, strength, fragility etc., and visual language concepts inherent in the mediums are combined in communicating ideas e.g. alternate painting and layering liquid glass (a transparent and reflective polymer), reinforced the concept of identity by reflecting the viewers image. When gazing at some paintings from the Ambiguity Of Identity Series the concept of identity also informed the use of the ‘liquid glass’ other then aesthetic or gimmicky reasons.
Q&Art: What defines success for you as an artist? Why?
DM: Achieving my visual projects and the being able to exhibit the work to as many people as possible, making the work and communicating through the visual language of the work is my work.
Q&Art: What are some of the issues you believe impact on your practice and vision as an artist?
DM: Economics and ignorance.
Q&Art: How important is contact with other artists to you and your practice?
DM: It’s good to engage with like minds. Active creative minds come from all walks of life. Being part of the conversation in contemporary society is important to me and my practice.
Q&Art: Is the gallery sector (commercial and non-commercial) important to you, or are there other opportunities you have been able to take advantage of to develop your practice and exhibit your work ?
DM: The gallery sector is extremely important in providing venues for artists to exhibit – we need more of them. I also like public spaces, shop fronts, malls, pubs, clubs and halls. Virtual galleries, web sites, social networks are growing and becoming more sophisticated and are a great connection between artists and patrons, but remember the ‘Medium is the Meaning’.
Q&Art: Finally, what has been one of the most memorable or defining moments in your career as an artist?
DM: Probably more vocation then career – a year at Glasgow School of Art. Brilliant – I’d like to return and do research through Studio 55.
More of Dennis Mortimer’s work can be seen online.
…about the practices and ideas driving some of the artists who choose to live and work in regional NSW.
Karrin Thurston, Track across my landscape, sand & acrylic paint on canvas - inspired by drying mud after rain at the puddling dams at Lightning Ridge. (Image courtesy of the artist)
Q&Art: What made you want to be an artist and what pathways did you take to make this happen?
KT: I have always painted – I cannot remember a time when I was not painting in some form. I loved art at school but then I took up cartography. Later when travelling and working on farms I used my art to teach and entertain children. I worked with Aboriginal elders in Northern Queensland and the Northern Territory before coming south and getting married. I then created an art studio to enjoy with our children.
Buying a shop in Mendooran (Central West NSW) was the introduction to a living canvas, as I transformed all the walls into murals. I was invited to Chemainus, BC (Canada) in 1998 to celebrate the town of murals. Here, I met mural artists world-wide and received accolades for my work.
I finished painting Mendooran and moved to Lightning Ridge (North West NSW) where I went to TAFE to complete Certificate 1 to 3 in Aboriginal art and culture, plus Aboriginal tourism.
Aunty Rose introduced me to sand painting and I continue to teach that. I work in acrylics, inks and sand.
Q&Art: What are some of the challenges you have faced, or continue to face, in realising your vision as an artist?
KT: Now, the challenge is the tyranny of distance. Also getting to be known, as I am a very late starter with becoming professional in my art. Usually there has been other work to consider, but now it is my time.
Q&Art: How did you arrive at the mediums you use in your practice today?
KT: I have worked in many mediums however I find that acrylic paint is very versatile as it can be made opaque or translucent and the quick drying means I can work in layers very quickly. I also like charcoal sketching and highlighting with ink.
Q&Art: What concepts or external influences do you work with in your practice?
KT: The land – the bush. I have a very strong bond to the earth around me. I was given the most exquisite compliment: Keep painting trees lass. While ever you paint trees the trees will never die. This was in reference to my mural trees in Mendooran, where the birds tried to land on the “branches”. I mine part-time here in the Ridge and I feel the dinosaurs in the clays and sandstones around me. It is sand from these sandstones that I use for my paintings.
Q&Art: How do the mediums you use help you to communicate the concepts you work with?
KT: I let my brush do the communicating. I become as one with my brush and the colours – everything else fades as I become a part of the canvas I am working on. Because of this I am emotionally committed to my art. Each artwork is a unique part of me.
Q&Art: What defines success for you as an artist? Why?
KT: Success is being content with what I create and having other people derive enjoyment from looking at it. Art is too personal to measure success in a monetary value. Sure, it is wonderful and uplifting to have someone like your work so much they will buy it to take home so they may continue to enjoy it.
Q&Art: What are some of the issues you believe impact on your practice and vision as an artist?
KT: I coordinate a couple of art groups. In the room there is a notice that says: Please keep negative comments to yourself. Art appeal is a very personal element; negative criticism is very different to constructive comments and can damage emerging artists. My environment is positive. I paint my environment but not the world’s troubles. My vision for the world would be to network friendship. Why, oh why, is there so much horror in the world? Art is a medium through which we can all appreciate the beauty of life.
Q&Art: How important is contact with other artists to you and your practice?
KT: This is crucial for development. We are born to communicate and be part of a community. If I wanted to live in isolation I would retire to an island, but for me that would stifle growth, as my art is a reflection of myself and it develops with my own growth.
Q&Art: Is the gallery sector (commercial and non-commercial) important to you, or are there other opportunities you have been able to take advantage of to develop your practice and exhibit your work?
KT: Gallery space is important for people to be able to look at and appreciate art. However, out here the opportunities are minimal, hence the new interest in cyber-space galleries – where the world can appreciate the art.
Q&Art: Finally, what has been one of the most memorable or defining moments in your career as an artist?
KT: Being invited to Chemainus as a mural artist and later being acknowledged by the judging panel of the Telstra Women in Business – Westpac Owner business section; to take the NSW title in 2001 acknowledging the impact of the murals on my business and the town of Mendooran. Also, as a part of this I was awarded an Australian Centenary medal in 2002 for services to business leadership. I now teach community mural development to school groups.
