World of the Book 2023, State Library of Victoria

Deborah Klein, Four pages from the unbound artist book, Leaves of Absence, 2017.

 Installation view, State Library of Victoria, April 2023.

Selected pages from Leaves of Absence, my unbound artist book, are on display in the latest iteration of World of the Book in the Dome Galleries, Level 4, State Library of Victoria, amidst some remarkable examples of silhouette art. 

Other exhibits include early editions of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and rare editions of Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There. 

The exhibition opened on 1 April 2023 and is current to 12 May 2024.

Pictured top: Memory 1, 16, 14 and 9 from Leaves of Absence, 2017, unbound artist book. Collection: State Library of Victoria.

Pictured below: The State Library’s splendid La Trobe Reading Room, viewed from the Dome Galleries. 

Shape of things to come

Pitcher, 2022, acrylic on canvas, 10 x 8 cm (pictured top in the upstairs kitchenette adjoining my studio, propped up by a vintage Johnson Brothers jug) is from a suite of miniature silhouettes created for next Sunday’s BMI Maker and Community Market.

The jug, from the Johnson Brothers Dream Town series, c 1950s, one of a pair recently purchased from Rocket and Belle in Ballarat, is currently among my favourite things. It was the point of departure for this work, although beyond elements of the colour scheme, there is no discernible resemblance between the two. The painting has been pared down to stylised shapes, drawing much of its inspiration from 1920s-30s Art Deco. 

This series in progress (see also previous post) reintroduces the Shadow Women, a cast of characters that made their first public appearance in my paintings, prints, artist books and zines in 2013. The current works were started in fun, but in a remarkably brief time frame, appear to be pointing the way to future directions in my work. All going well, they will form the basis for an ambitious project that has been on the back burner for so many years, I’d all but given up on it. I certainly didn’t see that one coming. 

Meanwhile, let us not forget the BMI Christmas Maker and Community Market:
Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute
117-119 Sturt Street
Ballarat Vic 3350.
Sunday December 18 from 9 am - 2 pm.

A past and future memory

My linocut The Drive Home, 2013, 17.5 x 12.5 cm, was originally made for the eponymous group exhibition at Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop in New York that opened on this day in 2013.

Viewed today, the work seems uncannily prophetic as Shane Jones and I anticipate the drive to our future home. We’ve only seven more weeks to wait, but sometimes it feels like we’ve been waiting for this our entire lives.

9th INTERNATIONAL PRINTMAKING EXHIBITION OF DOURO 2018

Memory 12, 2016, phemograph, edition 20

Memory 14, 2016, phemograph, edition 20

In the current flurry of activity, I completely forgot that Memory 12 and Memory 14, currently on exhibit at Gallery 125 in Perth, WA, are also part of the upcoming 9th INTERNATIONAL PRINTMAKING EXHIBITION OF DOURO 2018 in Portugal. My momentary memory loss stems from sending them over so long ago, back in April 2017, to be more precise. They were printed at Arten, as are all the works in this ongoing series.

The printmaking biennial comprises workshops, conferences, 14 exhibitions, and features a colossal 1,400 works from 700 artists from 70 countries. It runs from 10 August - 31 October.

Cross-continental events

Memory 1, phemograph, 2017, edition: 20, part of
A DARING LOVE AFFAIR WITH HER OWN SHADOW at Gallery 125, York, WA

Several of my works are part of a group show at Gallery 152 in York, Western Australia that opened yesterday, July 21. Curated by Leonie Oakes, it has a deliciously intriguing title: A DARING LOVE AFFAIR WITH HER OWN SHADOW.

Exhibiting artists are: Heather Shimmen, Jill Ansell, Rachel McKenzie, Lana de Jaga, Deborah Klein and Natasha Rowell.

The exhibition runs until Sunday, 26 August. https://www.instagram.com/p/BlecCl9j9l_/

Meanwhile, on the other side of the continent, the four Bower artists - Louise Saxton, myself, Carole Wilson and Loris Button - took part in Study Day 2018 at The Johnston Collection. The topic under discussion was PRIVATE COLLECTIONS/PUBLIC SPACES - THE VALUE OF ART & EPHEMERA. (See also yesterday’s post). We’re pictured below in front of our combined collections installation. 

L - R: Louise Saxton, myself, Carole Wilson and Loris Button. Photo credit: Warren Dowley

The Bower artists. Photo credit: Warren Dowley

Directly below, Carole Wilson introduces our visual presentation. Impeccably compiled by Loris Button, it included highlights of the show's previous iterations at Warrnambool Art Gallery and The Art Gallery of Ballarat.

Bower artist and curator Carole Wilson 

Bower artist Loris Button speaks of items from her private collection

The forum was one of numerous events, including an ongoing series of Walks-and-Talks, connected with our current exhibition/intervention PATTERNS OFCOLLECTING/From the Bower at the Johnston Collection, running until 18 September.

A Big Show of Small Works

I’m eagerly anticipating joining forces with an extraordinary lineup of artists in the upcoming Small Works: a Survey, including the inestimable Julie Keating and Debbie Hill, who also curated the exhibition. 

Included on the invitation is a detail of my painting Pirate Queen, seen below in its entirety:

Pirate Queen, 2012, acrylic on canvas, 9 x 7 cm
Photo credit: Tim Gresham

The show, which opens next Saturday, 7 April, from 2 - 5 pm, will be launched by David Coles, founder of Langridge Artist Colours. 

Small Works: a Survey

Red Rock Regional Theatre and Gallery

520 Corangamite Lake Road

Cororooke 3254.

Open weekends 11 am - 4 pm, or  by appointment.

Small Works runs to 29 April.

Happy Easter and some good news

I always look forward to the Easter break; it brings brief - but nonetheless welcome - respite from an already hectic year that, despite my best laid plans, has begun to seriously accelerate.

For me, Easter has always been associated with new beginnings. Entering into this spirit, I've begun work on the first of a new series of paintings, a project I've been planning for some time. Previews of the new work will feature in future posts.

Meanwhile, I'd like to share some super news from our sister blog, Moth Woman Press. My artist book Leaves of Absence is one of 75 finalists in the 2018 Libris Awards at Artspace Mackay. A page view, snapped in our study at Abbotsford, is below. For further views of Leaves of Absence, visit Moth Woman Press HERE.

EPHEMERA

Ephemeral - adjective: lasting only a short time. Synonyms: brief, deciduous, momentary, evanescent, flash, fleeting, fugacious, fugitive, impermanent, passing, short-lived, temporary, transient, transitory.

Similarly, FALLEN WOMEN, my solo show at Tacit Contemporary Art is destined to last but a short while longer. Catch it if you can before it closes on Sunday, 17 December.

Pictured top L - R: Ephemera (13) and Ephemera (2) 
Below L - R: Ephemera (1) Ephemera (10)  Ephemera (3) and Ephemera (14)
Bottom L - R: Ephemera (11) Ephemera (9) and Ephemera (17)

(Each work: 2017, Phemograph, edition 20).

Tacit Contemporary Art

312 Johnston St, Abbotsford, Vic 3067

T: 0423 323 188

E: keith@tacitart.com.au

Wednesday – Friday 11am–6pm

Saturday – Sunday 11am–5pm

MEET THE ARTIST

If you're free, come along to my solo show FALLEN WOMEN at Tacit Contemporary Art this coming Saturday, 9 December from 2- 4 pm for an informal Meet the Artist event.

If you have any questions about the work (for example, what on earth is a Phemograph?) this is your chance to ask them.

If you can't make it - although I do hope you can - the exhibition is current until Sunday, 17 December.

Pictured top: Fallen Woman 14, 2017, phemograph, 39.5 x 30 cm, edition: 20.

Tacit Contemporary Art
312 Johnston St, Abbotsford, Vic 3067
T: 0423 323 188
E: keith@tacitart.com.au

Wednesday – Friday 11am–6pm
Saturday – Sunday 11am–5pm

IMAGININGS

I'm privileged to be one of the 65 artists exhibiting in Imaginings, curated by printmaking legend, Rona Green.

The opening celebration is this very afternoon, Saturday, 2 December between 2 - 4 pm at Neospace, 7 Campbell Street, Collingwood.

To view the exhibition catalogue, go HERE.

Imaginings runs until Tuesday, 19 December.

Pictured above is my contribution, Fallen, 2017, phemograph, 20 x 14.2 xm. Printed at Arten.

FALLEN WOMEN: Opening Night

Sending warm thanks on this cold, wet Ballarat evening to the many valiant souls who endured last Wednesday's scorcher to attend the opening night of FALLEN WOMEN at Tacit Contemporary Art in Melbourne. We only remembered to take some snaps towards the end, after the crowd had abated somewhat (although unfortunately the heat hadn't).

Photographer Tim Gresham will shortly be taking some detailed installation views of the show. Meanwhile, here are a few to be going on with.

DK with Shane Jones. Photo credit: Priscilla Ambrosini

Gaye Britt and Tim Gresham

Among those in this group, L - R: Miranda Costa, Priscilla Ambrosini, Shane Jones, Tim Gresham, Gaye Britt,
Angie Black and Paul Compton.

With Paul Compton. Photo credit: Priscilla Ambrosini

Installation view: four more works from the Ephemera suite 

L - R: Priscilla Ambrosini, Paul Compton, myself and Shane Jones. Photo credit: Julie Keating

Leaves of Absence updates

Leaves of Absence, 2017, artist book, archival inkjet prints, cloth cover, edition: 10 plus 1 artist proof
32.5 x 25.5 x 4.0 cm (closed) 32.5 x 55.0 x 4 cm (open). Printer: Luke Ingram.

While my artist book Leaves of Absence (2017) takes a brief hiatus from touring in From the bower - patterns of collecting (see previous post) edition no. 2/10 has recently traveled from Perth, WA and is currently on view in the Melbourne leg of Between the sheets: artists' books 2017 at Australian Galleries Melbourne. The exhibition opened on Tuesday evening, June 13 and runs until July 2. For further information, go HERE and HERE.

Meanwhile, in recently breaking news, Leaves of Absence has been shortlisted for the 2017 Geelong acquisitive print awards. The biennial exhibition and acquisitive awards will run from 2 August - 8 October. For full details, visit Moth Woman Press HERE. 

FALLEN WOMEN: the working process

Key stages in the development of two works from the Fallen Women series (an offshoot of Leaves of Absence). In each case, the process begins with a silhouette-hand painted onto a eucalyptus leaf and ends with a digital proof, the basis for the bonne à tirer (loosely translated, 'good to go').

Pigment prints in progress

Step 1: 

After coating both sides of the Eucalyptus leaves with a thin layer of clear sealer, the silhouettes are painted on.

Step 2:

The embellished leaves are photographed and a series of filters applied, layer upon layer. I made dozens of digital proofs before arriving at the following images. The next step will be to proof them with master printer Luke Ingram at Arten.

The leaf in the image below was especially pleasing to work with. Thanks to some inspired chomping from my collaborator, a Eucalyptus tip bug, I was able to follow the contour of the altered leaf to create the shape and angle of my subject's head.

The leaf used in the following work is Thumbelina-sized, so I'm pleasantly surprised at how well it has adapted to a relatively extreme upscale (more about this in my next post). The completed archival pigment prints will be roughly A3 in size, possibly a little larger.

The working table

Leaf art on the drawing board: the first stage of several Leaves of Absence archival pigment prints. The Eucalyptus leaves are pressed, coated with clear sealer and the images drawn on with Winsor and Newton pigment markers.

The markers have become an indispensable part of this project, and, as a Winsor and Newton Global Ambassador, I'm very fortunate to have had access to them before their official Australian release in early July (more about this nearer the time).

Opening today: Return to Hanging Rock

As regular visitors to this blog will be aware, two of my works, Vignette Vitrine and A Cabinet of Moth Masks, are part of the exhibition Return to Hanging Rock at the National Trust property, Mulberry Hill. The show commemorates 40 years of the novel Picnic at Hanging Rock. Mulberry Hill is the former home of its author, Joan Lindsay.

Pictured top: Return to Hanging Rock exhibition poster
Pictured above, top: Vignette Vitrine (2012, miniature canvases in display case, 31 x 31 cm). Bottom: two of its contents. L-R: Avenger and Bird Pin (both 2012, acrylic on canvas, 9 x 7 cm).

Return to Hanging Rock was curated by Cara-Ann Simpson. It opens today, January 2, and runs until March 27, 2016. Details are on the poster above. For further information, visit the website HERE.

Happy New Year

2016 is a leap year, so whatever your resolutions may be, you will have 366 days to realise them. Whether your goals include turning over a new leaf or you decide to stay just as you are, may you rise to every challenge in a year filled with happiness, creativity and good health.

A clear work top ready for the New Year and new beginnings. (My workstation at Abbotsford in Melbourne).

Progress views of Ideopsis gaura (Dainty paperwing) Woman

The carving of the linocut Ideopsis gaura (Dainty paperwing) Woman is entering its final stages in perfect unison with the last days of the 2015 Melbourne International Film Festival. (See previous post).

Directly below: the lino block on the drafting table, surrounded by reference materials and other paraphernalia and overlooked by chorus lines of Homo-insecta (top) Shadow Women (bottom) and artworks by Jazmina Cininas, Rona Green and Claire Humphries (left of screen).

My workstation at our warehouse apartment in Abbotsford, Melbourne

Below are selected views of the linocut’s gradual progress throughout the past week: