The 5th Anniversary of the Art Vault Part 3

Sunday brunch with Julie and Kevin

We were warmly greeted by Kevin upon arrival at the house on Friday evening. It was marvellous to see Kevin, Julie and all the Art Vault folk again. Left to right: Shane, Kevin, ex de Medici and Ros Atkins.

The chairs and tables were already in place for Sunday brunch:

On Sunday morning, just before the festivities got under way: Kevin, ex, Julie and Ros.

What a feast it was. Pictured below: Trace from the Art Vault (in profile, second from left) and Sasha Grishin (5th from right, rear). Second from right: artist Graeme Drendel piles his plate with tasty morsels.

Below: artist Susan Baran, the Art Vault's Mia Kolpin and Mia's Harvey.

Inside Julie and Kevin's house: myself and Peter Lancaster. (The following two photographs are courtesy of Anne Spudvilas):

Julie and Kevin had all the artists sign a life-sized poster of the door to the gallery's vault, from which it takes its name. The vault is now used as a storage area for artwork.

Here is Anne adding her signature and message of congratulations.

From left: Andrew, Shane, Peter, Wendy and Stephanie.

Below: yours truly with Shane, Susan, Anne and Martin. Photo courtesy Anne Spudvilas.

... and a visit with Anne Spudvilas

After brunch Anne kindly invited us to her house in Wentworth. Here she is showing us her studio in progress. Pictured from left: Anjilie, Martin, Anne, Denise and Susan.

The river from Anne's back garden:

I have quite a thing for birdbaths; this is the most striking example I've ever seen:

Anne's house, viewed from the back garden:

Another river view...

...and an unexpected visitor:

The 5th Anniversary of the Art Vault Part 2

Our long weekend in Mildura was blessed with warm, sunny weather. After another relentlessly cold, wet Ballarat winter (which has now extended into spring), this was a welcome bonus.

Not surprisingly, upon arrival our first port of call was the Art Vault, where we reunited with Art Vault Director Julie Chambers and met fellow artist Tony Ameneiro.

Julie showed Shane and I our pages in a sumptuous new book containing highlights of the gallery's first five years. Behind it is the Art Vault 5th Anniversary catalogue, which details its history and devotes a page to every artist who has undertaken a residency to date.

Back at the Art Vault on the following day, we met up with artist Martin King and Dr Sasha Grishin. The latter was invited by Julie to launch the 5th Anniversary exhibition. I wish I had followed Sasha's example and had all the artists present autograph their pages in the commemorative catalogue. Below, from left: Shane Jones, Martin King signing Sasha Grishin's catalogue and on the far right, Sasha himself.

Back at Julie and Kevin's house, my fellow shipmates prepare to depart for the exhibition opening and anniversary party. Below, from left: Martin King, Rosalind Atkins, Shane Jones, ex de Medici and Stephanie Bolt.

Thoughtful as ever, Julie and Kevin had arranged for two stretch limousines to take us to and from the party. I am sure that we all thought that these vehicles were the last word in vulgarity. But once we had the opportunity to actually ride in one, we were as excited as children. Most artists I know are not used to being made to feel so special. Pictured below from left: ex de Medici and Ros Atkins.

From left: ex de Medici, Ros and I.

Heaven knows how many photographs we took of each other during the relatively short ride to the Art Vault. Here, Ros photographs me photographing her, while ex contemplates her next shot.

Below: Shane Jones, Anita Laurence and Bill Young.

Our James Bond-style bar changed colour every few seconds. It was stocked with mineral water and  lollypops.

Shane Jones contemplating a lifestyle to which he wouldn't mind becoming accustomed. Anita and Bill concur.

Our limos arrive at their destination. Ours was the one in front. Later that evening we road home on the second one.

Sasha Grishin's memorable launch of the exhibition. (Photograph courtesy of Anne Spudlivas)

At the party's commencement, Julie Chambers takes the microphone.

Completely absorbed in Julie's speech, Shane Jones is oblivious to the charms of two of the party's exotic hostesses:

Helen Healy especially composed and performed a song celebrating the Art Vault's inestimable contribution to the arts in Mildura. It was unquestionably one of the evening's highlights.

During the ride home in limo #2 David Frazer and his partner Sarah partook of some of the limo's extensive supply of lollypops...

...as did Rod Gray.

The 5th Anniversary of the Art Vault Part 1

On Friday, 1 November the Art Vault in Mildura turned 5 years old. For art lovers and especially the hoards of artists they have befriended during that time, this really was an event worth celebrating. And celebrate we did, almost non-stop, from our arrival on the evening of their birthday until our reluctant departure on Monday morning.

My partner Shane Jones and I have each undertaken two residencies on alternating years and on each occasion the experience has been incredibly rewarding and productive. My artist statement in their 5th Anniversary Catalogue sums up something of my experience of the Art Vault:

From my very first day at the Art Vault, I felt as if I’d come home. The environment is warm and friendly, the facilities superb. Everything is set in place for us to make our work and to use our time in the best way we see fit. A generosity of spirit pervades the Art Vault: artist-residents are nurtured and encouraged - sometimes downright spoilt. As an added bonus, over the years I’ve also met some wonderful people and made some lasting friendships.

Deborah Klein

Melbourne

July 2013

The generosity of  the Art Vault's founders Julie and Kevin seemingly knows no bounds. For the duration of our three-day long visit we stayed on their luxurious houseboat Cutting Edge. It is moored at the bottom of their garden which slopes gently and lushly down to the Murray River.

Our delightful houseboat-mates were fellow artists Ros Atkins, ex de Medici, Stephanie Bolt and Martin King. You would be hard-pressed to find a finer crew.

Below, clockwise: Dr Sasha Grishin, ex de Medici, Stephanie Bolt, Rosalind Atkins, Martin King and with his back to the camera, Shane Jones

On the day of the Art Vault's 5th Anniversary exhibition and party we entertained Dr Sasha Grishin, who would launch the show that evening. Below from far left (clockwise): Shane Jones, Dr Sasha Grishin, ex de Medici, Stephanie Bolt, Ros Atkins, Martin King and Rod Gray.

On Sunday, November 3, Julie and Kevin hosted a spectacular picnic brunch in their garden. It was great to meet fellow artist Anne Spudvilas, a former Art Vault artist in residence who loved the Mildura area so much that she has now moved here permanently. Having since visited her house, which nestles by the junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers, I can hardly blame her. We are pictured here in the spacious living room on the Cutting Edge.

Dusk over the Murray...

... and the sun sets on the end of a perfect day.

Wonder Hang Part 2

Until Tim Gresham takes some professional installation views of Wonder Room, I must content myself with my own snapshots, most of which were taken during the exhibition hang. They may not be up to Tim’s high standard, but they certainly bring back some great memories.

From top:

Image 1:

Pictured top row left and right respectively: my Tall Tales vertical artist books, and a cabinet of tiny silhouette paintings. Centre insert: Wonder Room artist Paul Compton vigorously polishing the display case of the latter (thanks, Paul).

Centre row, left to right: an installation view of Paul's superbly imagined and realised Cabinets of Wonder and a close-up of my favourite drawing in the series, The Dumb Waiter Cabinet, 2013.

Other centre inserts: my Tall Poppies miniature painting and directly beneath it, a detail of Heather Shimmen's magical Wonder Broom (pictured just before it flew up to the ceiling of the gallery and refused to come down). Peeking out from under this is my Homo-insecta, a limited edition portfolio containing eight hand coloured linocuts of recently discovered insect women.

On the bottom row left are a selection of Heather Shimmen's Celestials linocuts on felt and Rona Green's painting of plucky  'Bucky', 2013, photographed prior to their installation in Gallery 2. Bottom row right is another of my favourite works in the show, Rona’s The Doctor I: Vortis, 2010, one of several reincarnations of the immortal Doctor that are displayed in Gallery 1.

Image 2:

Paul Compton fine-tuning the display of the facsimile edition of my Homo-insecta porfolio.

Image 3:

Left to right: Maroondah Art Gallery volunteer Jennifer, assistant curator Clinton Greenwood and Wonder Room artist Paul Compton hard at work on Day 3 of the installation. 

Artwork (clockwise): Rona Green’s painting Bogeyman, my miniature Shadow Women paintings, Paul Compton’s unique pop-up book Pickled and my Cabinet of Insect Women watercolours.

Wonder Hang

Four happy artists: Heather Shimmen, Rona Green, Paul Compton and myself pictured during Day 1 of the installation of Wonder Room at Maroondah Art Gallery. Much credit for the exhibition's elegant design belongs to assistant curator Clinton Greenwood, who appears in both photographs at the top and, most notably, bottom left, in which the heroic hang of Rona Green's monumental painting Bogey Man has been captured for posterity. In the same shot, far left, is gallery volunteer Jennifer, who was also an essential part of Team Wonder Room. Also pictured are Clinton, Paul and Rona. To the right of this photo Heather Shimmen unveils her much anticipated Wonder Broom to the delight of Paul Compton. It now magically hovers over the other Wonder Room exhibits in Gallery 1. 

For those still contemplating a visit, the show runs until 30 November. As you enter, don't forget to look up.

Wonder Cabinet

The result of countless field trips to a secret woodland location, this tiny plan cabinet houses watercolours of thirty newly unearthed sub-species, each one painted directly from life, to exact scale and in painstaking detail. The significance of this discovery is beyond measure. Until now, the elusive Insect Women were believed to be entirely mythological. 

The cabinet is currently on display in a room filled with equally extraordinary unnatural history specimens in the pop-up Wunderkammer Wonder Room at Maroondah Art Gallery, Ringwood, which runs until 30 November.

Pictured above
A Cabinet of Insect Women, 2012

Miniature plan cabinet 

17.5H x 16W x 12 D

Thirty watercolours on Khadi paper 

Each 10.5 x 7.5 cm 

Wonder Room: An invitation and a Cabinet of Moth Masks

Early next week, after over two years of plotting and planning and making, the Wonder Room artists will install our exhibition. It opens on Thursday, October 17 at 6.30. Please come along and join us:

Until then, pictured below is a preview of another of my Wonder Room exhibits. The majority of the work was made especially for the exhibition; however this Cabinet of Unnatural Curiosities is a continuation of a work that had its genesis in 2010.

Its inspiration was drawn primarily from the fairy tale The Story of the Moth Masks, which I wrote in 2008 (to read it, click HERE). Through the process of natural selection the original masked Moth Women have since evolved into the decidedly less retiring and genteel Moth Woman Vigilantes. But that’s another story…

Pictured above:

A Cabinet of Moth Masks, 2010-2013

Acrylic on miniature plaster masks

Smaller masks: 8 x 5.5 cm
Larger masks: 13 x 9 cm

Plan cabinet:
43H x 47W x 29D cm

Wonder Room

Maroondah Art Gallery

32 Greenwood Avenue

Ringwood, Victoria

Melway Reference: 49 H10

Telephone: 03 9298 4542

www.artsinmaroondah.com.au

Opening Hours: Tuesday - Friday 10 - 4; Saturday 12 - 4 (closed public holidays)

Bluebird and Castles in the Hair

Bluebird, 2013 and Castles in the Hair, 2013
Ink and acrylic on Khadi paper
Unique artist books, each 15 x 80 cm (open)
Photography by Tim Gresham

When the two artist books pictured on the left were photographed recently, their pairing was quite arbitrary. Coincidentally, however, they share a thematic link: both take well-known figures of speech as points of departure (one in the form of a pun). They tap into the nature of human aspirations, the first of which is - at best - impermanent, whilst the other, because it has no basis whatsoever in reality, is doomed to be forever unattainable. 

I’ve just finished re-reading Voltaire's timeless satiric masterpiece Candide, or Optimism (1759) and wonder if something of its sentiments (its highly ironic catchphrase is "all is for the best in this best of all possible worlds") were subconsciously absorbed into these two works - more particularly the latter.

BLUEBIRD

In Native American culture the attributes of the Bluebird are happiness, joy, and contentment. Similarly, the Oxford English Dictionary defines Bluebird as “happiness”. This symbology was the basis for the plot of l’Oiseau bleu, or The Bluebird, a 1909 play by Belgian playwright and poet Maurice Maeterlinck, which purportedly introduced the phrase "Bluebird of happiness".

In this context the Bluebird has long been absorbed into popular music, which tends to stress its elusive nature, for example in the lyric Over the Rainbow: (1) "...Somewhere over the rainbow, Bluebirds fly/Birds fly over the rainbow/Why, oh why can't I?". Another song, also memorably performed by Judy Garland is I'm Always Chasing Rainbows: (2) "... I'm always chasing rainbows/ Waiting to find a little bluebird in vain".

(1) Published 1939, Music: E. Y. Harburg/Lyrics: Harold Arlen

(2) Published 1917, Music: Harry Carroll/Lyrics: Joseph McCarthy

CASTLES IN THE (H)AIR

The idiom "castles in the air", refers to futile flights of fancy. Two early examples of its usage date from the sixteenth century:

"In a word, whoever will consult common sense upon religious opinions, and will carry into the examination the attention given to objects of ordinary interest, will easily perceive that the opinions have no solid foundation; that all religion is but a castle in the air; that Theology is but ignorance of natural causes reduced to a system...."

Michel de Montaigne, 1533-1592 (Translated from the French)

"And that the Poet hath that Idea, is manifest, by delivering them foorth in such excellencie as he had imagined them: which delivering foorth, also is not wholly imaginative, as we are wont to say by them that build Castles in the aire..."

Sir Philip Sidney, 1554-1586

Bluebird, 2013 and Castles in the Hair, 2013

Acrylic on canvas

Each work: 12.5 x 7.5 cm
Photography: Tim Gresham

Pictured directly above are the miniature paintings that served as studies for the artist books. All the work featured in this post was made especially for the forthcoming exhibition Wonder Room. It will hang alongside works by fellow Wonder Room artists Rona Green, Paul Compton, Heather Shimmen and Filomena Coppola.

Quicksand

Work continues in earnest on the group exhibition Wonder Room at Maroondah Art Gallery. There is still much to do before we hang the show on October 15, but progress has definitely been made. Last night at a meeting with fellow artists Rona Green, Paul Compton and Heather Shimmen (four out of the five WR crew) I was privileged to see some of their fantastical Wonder Room artwork and thrilled to get a real sense of how our collective vision is beginning to converge: the show’s title is certainly apt.

Here is another of my own humble contributions. Quicksand is from a suite of fourteen miniature silhouettes. (See also previous blog post that features the first in the series, Tall Poppies).

Like Tall Poppies, Quicksand also served as the basis for a one-of-a-kind vertical concertina book, which is also destined for Wonder Room. The artwork for both books has just been completed. To preview them in their unbound state, visit Moth Woman Press HERE. 

Pictured left: Quicksand, 2013, acrylic on canvas, 12.5 x 7.5 cm.   
Photograph by Tim Gresham.

Spring Blooms: Tall Poppies

Previewed in this post is Tall Poppies, one of fourteen newly completed miniature silhouette paintings that will make their debut in the group exhibition Wonder Room in mid-October. The series evolved directly from the miniature paintings and unique artist books that were exhibited in my solo show Tall Tales at Hand Held Gallery back in July.  

It is the introduction of selective areas of colour that most markedly differentiates this series from the earlier paintings. This, and their tall, narrow compositions, aligns them more closely with the vertical concertina artist books. Like the previous, even more diminutive black on white silhouette paintings, several of the new works, including this one, will serve as the basis for an artist book. To see the artist book Tall Poppies in progress, visit Moth Woman Press HERE.

Pictured left: Tall Poppies, 2013, acrylic on canvas, 12.5 x 7.5 cm.