RIPPLES ON THE WATER | LINES IN THE SAND
February 10th 2010 07:47
Original Creative Writing:
Depot Gallery on Danks Street is proudly presenting RIPPLES ON THE WATER, LINES IN THE SAND a monumental Indigenous Art Exhibition showcasing the brand new works of prestigious female Aboriginal artists Kathleen Petyarre and Joanne Currie.
RIPPLES ON THE WATER LINES IN THE SAND
Two of Australia's most revered Indigenous Artists combine the earthly elements during ART MONTH SYDNEY
New paintings by Kathleen Petyarre and Joanne Currie exhibit at Depot Gallery (Dank Street), Waterloo, from 9 -21 March 2010
Two of Australia's most prominent female Aboriginal artists, Telstra National Aboriginal Award Winner Kathleen Petyarre, and AGNSW Wynne Prize Winner Joanne Currie debut their new artworks in Sydney this March (9-20).
We are pleased to announce that both artists will attend their opening night celebrations at Dank Street. Presented by Waterhole Art in conjunction with Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Bondi, the exhibition will be a unique opportunity to see important new works by Petyarre, who is in her seventies and nearing the end of an illustrious career, and Currie, whose paintings are exhibited for the first time in Sydney by a commercial gallery. This is an opportunity to see the best examples of Indigenous art from the remote communities of Mitchell, Central Queensland and Atnangker, Northern Territory; the places where Currie and Petyarre respectively come from.
Petyarre and Currie have cemented their names as two of Australia's most talented indigenous artists. They continue to inspire Australians with their spiritual paintings, revealing poignant insights into traditions and ancestral heritage through their art. Drawing on childhood and their connections to the land, the artists explore the dreamtime, connecting their ancient histories to the modern day; hiding their sacred cultural laws amongst incredible art works, and at the same time revealing their successes as contemporary Aboriginal artists.
According to indigenous art consultant and curator of Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Adrian Newstead, The excitement of Kathleen's work lies in its aesthetically beautiful surface and her stunning technical mastery. While her paintings are completely indigenous in their inspiration and sacred meaning, her canvases have a refined international appeal. They occupy a space between the archaic and the absolutely avant-garde.
In reflecting on Currie's work Newstead notes, Joannes highly charged individual style is instantly recognisable as Aboriginal, yet speaks of her journey as an artist moving within cultures her artwork holds to tradition yet sits confidently in the here and now.
Both Petyarre and Currie have exhibited their work across Australia and overseas including Germany, France, Japan and the US. They have overcome hardship to flourish in the Australian and international art environment. Brought up in the remote country of the Northern Territory, Petyarre travelled the distance of her vast 200 square kilometre homeland by foot in search of seasonal food and water. Currie has memories of early life on the banks of the Maranoa River in Central Queensland: a seeming no-man's land of kerosene lamps, Government issued blankets, and of witnessed physical and substance abuse.
These remarkable women will be at the opening of their exhibition at Depot Gallery on Danks Street, Waterloo to proudly showcase their significant joint exhibition.
Kathleen Petyarre Born Kweyetwemp in the remote spinifex country of Atnangker, which lies some 275 kilometers north-east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Kathleen Petyarre belongs to the Anmatyerr clan group and speaks Eastern Anmatyerr with English as a second language. During childhood, Kathleen travelled around her vast homelands of some 200 square kilometres with her father, mother, siblings and extended family, according to the seasonal availability of bush foods and water. From this early age, Kathleen learnt to understand land navigation and acquired the knowledge of the spatial history of her country.
Kathleen, her daughter Margaret, and her sisters later settled at Iylenty (Mosquito Bore) on Utopia Station and it was during this time that Kathleen became one of the key women involved in the successful claim for the freehold title that lead to the 1979 formal hand-over of the Utopia lease back to its traditional custodians.
Kathleen, together with her brothers and sisters, has custodial rights of the Arnkerrth Dreaming (Mountain Devil Lizard), together with its associated narrative, which is referenced in all of Kathleen's works. The lizard is a small spiky animal that changes colour to protect itself as it moves from one place to another. From a traditional perspective, the lizard is at once a spirit of the dreaming and the embodiment of the artist herself.
Kathleen's images are map-like; metaphors for Arnkerrth's journeys through the vast desert landscape. Interestingly, the extensive tracts of land Kathleen represents have been shown to reflect remarkable correspondence to geographic features mapped by satellite imagery. Her paintings impart a sense of serenity and the spacious power and beauty in which the spirit of her ancestral country reside.
Joanne Currie's an urban based artist, Joanne began painting in 1992 with a strong motivation to authenticate her work culturally by painting designs relevant to her background as an Aboriginal person from Mitchell in Central Queensland. During her early career, Joanne spent considerable time at the Queensland Museum, examining the collection of shield designs from her region. The important information she gathered merged with her ongoing investigations into formal colour and composition.
Now, after nearly twenty years of art practice on public projects and private commissions involving fibreglass, carved timber, polyurethane and glass, Joanne's painting have reached a point of refinement. Her river lines create a heightened allure through resonating and rhythmic repetitious patterns. She depicts the river as a living entity with the ripple of wind on water, the aura of light, and the ethereal quality of early morning and twilight air.
The ochre hues employed in her works throughout the 1990s have given way to bright fields of solid colour, often predominantly white laced with vivid reds, piercing blues, fiery oranges and rich plums. Joanne's meticulous technique considers every inch of the canvas. She has achieved a remarkable finish that exhibits both confidence and subtlety. Joanne's paintings simply glisten.
Joanne has witnessed plenty of the physical and substance abuse of Aboriginal people in their homes as well as the complexities of modern life to open up to people too quickly. In public, she usually waits and watches. Indeed, her reserved character is noted by many who meet her. As are her principles: Whether you're black or white it is almost always about notions of basic respect that will get Joanne commenting about life - about people, culture and art.
Coo-ee Aboriginal Art GallerySince first working with Aboriginal artists in 1981 Coo-ee Gallery has curated and organised more than 300 Indigenous art exhibitions in Australia and overseas involving individual Aboriginal artists and community groups. These have included the landmark touring exhibition New Tracks Old Land (USA and Australia 1992-96) and exhibitions in Lyon, Lusanne, Paris, Zurich, New York, Portland, Boston and Seattle, Santa Fe and Vancouver.
The gallery, situated at the iconic destination of Bondi Beach, specialises in both primary and secondary market Aboriginal art. This includes historically important bark paintings, artefacts, and early desert boards as well as high quality contemporary Aboriginal paintings, sculpture and limited edition fine art prints. Over the past 30 years the gallery has acted as the Australian and the Sydney representative for a number of important artists
Executive Director Adrian Newstead sources artworks personally from Aboriginal communities throughout Australia. The consistently high quality and variety of works in the gallery reflects a depth of knowledge born of 30 years in the industry along with an involvement with communities stretching back 25 years.
Waterhole Art
Jenny Hillman and Suzie Spira are the two directors of Waterhole Art. Waterhole Art curates the annual Shalom Gamarada exhibition at UNSW which raises money from the sale of artworks from art centres around Australia to fund scholarships for Indigenous students to study medicine at UNSW.
This scholarship program is in its sixth year and currently has fifteen students studying, funded by the exhibition. They also hold other annual exhibitions, including the recent sculpture exhibition Gatherings at Depot Gallery on Danks St, Waterloo, which showcased the cast metal works of remote Indigenous communities produced in workshops with Urban Arts in Brisbane.
The directors have an extensive collection of contemporary Indigenous art which they lend to regional galleries for exhibitions.
EXHIBITION DATES & TIMES:
From 9-21 March 2010. Gallery opening hours 11am-6pm, Tues-Sun
VENUE: Depot Gallery 2 Danks Street, Waterloo
MORE INFO: 2 Danks STREET| WATERHOLE
RIPPLES ON THE WATER LINES IN THE SAND
Two of Australia's most revered Indigenous Artists combine the earthly elements during ART MONTH SYDNEY
New paintings by Kathleen Petyarre and Joanne Currie exhibit at Depot Gallery (Dank Street), Waterloo, from 9 -21 March 2010
Two of Australia's most prominent female Aboriginal artists, Telstra National Aboriginal Award Winner Kathleen Petyarre, and AGNSW Wynne Prize Winner Joanne Currie debut their new artworks in Sydney this March (9-20).
We are pleased to announce that both artists will attend their opening night celebrations at Dank Street. Presented by Waterhole Art in conjunction with Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Bondi, the exhibition will be a unique opportunity to see important new works by Petyarre, who is in her seventies and nearing the end of an illustrious career, and Currie, whose paintings are exhibited for the first time in Sydney by a commercial gallery. This is an opportunity to see the best examples of Indigenous art from the remote communities of Mitchell, Central Queensland and Atnangker, Northern Territory; the places where Currie and Petyarre respectively come from.
Petyarre and Currie have cemented their names as two of Australia's most talented indigenous artists. They continue to inspire Australians with their spiritual paintings, revealing poignant insights into traditions and ancestral heritage through their art. Drawing on childhood and their connections to the land, the artists explore the dreamtime, connecting their ancient histories to the modern day; hiding their sacred cultural laws amongst incredible art works, and at the same time revealing their successes as contemporary Aboriginal artists.
According to indigenous art consultant and curator of Coo-ee Aboriginal Art Gallery, Adrian Newstead, The excitement of Kathleen's work lies in its aesthetically beautiful surface and her stunning technical mastery. While her paintings are completely indigenous in their inspiration and sacred meaning, her canvases have a refined international appeal. They occupy a space between the archaic and the absolutely avant-garde.
In reflecting on Currie's work Newstead notes, Joannes highly charged individual style is instantly recognisable as Aboriginal, yet speaks of her journey as an artist moving within cultures her artwork holds to tradition yet sits confidently in the here and now.
Both Petyarre and Currie have exhibited their work across Australia and overseas including Germany, France, Japan and the US. They have overcome hardship to flourish in the Australian and international art environment. Brought up in the remote country of the Northern Territory, Petyarre travelled the distance of her vast 200 square kilometre homeland by foot in search of seasonal food and water. Currie has memories of early life on the banks of the Maranoa River in Central Queensland: a seeming no-man's land of kerosene lamps, Government issued blankets, and of witnessed physical and substance abuse.
These remarkable women will be at the opening of their exhibition at Depot Gallery on Danks Street, Waterloo to proudly showcase their significant joint exhibition.
Kathleen Petyarre Born Kweyetwemp in the remote spinifex country of Atnangker, which lies some 275 kilometers north-east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Kathleen Petyarre belongs to the Anmatyerr clan group and speaks Eastern Anmatyerr with English as a second language. During childhood, Kathleen travelled around her vast homelands of some 200 square kilometres with her father, mother, siblings and extended family, according to the seasonal availability of bush foods and water. From this early age, Kathleen learnt to understand land navigation and acquired the knowledge of the spatial history of her country.
Kathleen, her daughter Margaret, and her sisters later settled at Iylenty (Mosquito Bore) on Utopia Station and it was during this time that Kathleen became one of the key women involved in the successful claim for the freehold title that lead to the 1979 formal hand-over of the Utopia lease back to its traditional custodians.
Kathleen, together with her brothers and sisters, has custodial rights of the Arnkerrth Dreaming (Mountain Devil Lizard), together with its associated narrative, which is referenced in all of Kathleen's works. The lizard is a small spiky animal that changes colour to protect itself as it moves from one place to another. From a traditional perspective, the lizard is at once a spirit of the dreaming and the embodiment of the artist herself.
Kathleen's images are map-like; metaphors for Arnkerrth's journeys through the vast desert landscape. Interestingly, the extensive tracts of land Kathleen represents have been shown to reflect remarkable correspondence to geographic features mapped by satellite imagery. Her paintings impart a sense of serenity and the spacious power and beauty in which the spirit of her ancestral country reside.
Joanne Currie's an urban based artist, Joanne began painting in 1992 with a strong motivation to authenticate her work culturally by painting designs relevant to her background as an Aboriginal person from Mitchell in Central Queensland. During her early career, Joanne spent considerable time at the Queensland Museum, examining the collection of shield designs from her region. The important information she gathered merged with her ongoing investigations into formal colour and composition.
Now, after nearly twenty years of art practice on public projects and private commissions involving fibreglass, carved timber, polyurethane and glass, Joanne's painting have reached a point of refinement. Her river lines create a heightened allure through resonating and rhythmic repetitious patterns. She depicts the river as a living entity with the ripple of wind on water, the aura of light, and the ethereal quality of early morning and twilight air.
The ochre hues employed in her works throughout the 1990s have given way to bright fields of solid colour, often predominantly white laced with vivid reds, piercing blues, fiery oranges and rich plums. Joanne's meticulous technique considers every inch of the canvas. She has achieved a remarkable finish that exhibits both confidence and subtlety. Joanne's paintings simply glisten.
Joanne has witnessed plenty of the physical and substance abuse of Aboriginal people in their homes as well as the complexities of modern life to open up to people too quickly. In public, she usually waits and watches. Indeed, her reserved character is noted by many who meet her. As are her principles: Whether you're black or white it is almost always about notions of basic respect that will get Joanne commenting about life - about people, culture and art.
Coo-ee Aboriginal Art GallerySince first working with Aboriginal artists in 1981 Coo-ee Gallery has curated and organised more than 300 Indigenous art exhibitions in Australia and overseas involving individual Aboriginal artists and community groups. These have included the landmark touring exhibition New Tracks Old Land (USA and Australia 1992-96) and exhibitions in Lyon, Lusanne, Paris, Zurich, New York, Portland, Boston and Seattle, Santa Fe and Vancouver.
The gallery, situated at the iconic destination of Bondi Beach, specialises in both primary and secondary market Aboriginal art. This includes historically important bark paintings, artefacts, and early desert boards as well as high quality contemporary Aboriginal paintings, sculpture and limited edition fine art prints. Over the past 30 years the gallery has acted as the Australian and the Sydney representative for a number of important artists
Executive Director Adrian Newstead sources artworks personally from Aboriginal communities throughout Australia. The consistently high quality and variety of works in the gallery reflects a depth of knowledge born of 30 years in the industry along with an involvement with communities stretching back 25 years.
Waterhole Art
Jenny Hillman and Suzie Spira are the two directors of Waterhole Art. Waterhole Art curates the annual Shalom Gamarada exhibition at UNSW which raises money from the sale of artworks from art centres around Australia to fund scholarships for Indigenous students to study medicine at UNSW.
This scholarship program is in its sixth year and currently has fifteen students studying, funded by the exhibition. They also hold other annual exhibitions, including the recent sculpture exhibition Gatherings at Depot Gallery on Danks St, Waterloo, which showcased the cast metal works of remote Indigenous communities produced in workshops with Urban Arts in Brisbane.
The directors have an extensive collection of contemporary Indigenous art which they lend to regional galleries for exhibitions.
EXHIBITION DATES & TIMES:
From 9-21 March 2010. Gallery opening hours 11am-6pm, Tues-Sun
VENUE: Depot Gallery 2 Danks Street, Waterloo
MORE INFO: 2 Danks STREET| WATERHOLE
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David Jobling
