Andrew MCQUALTER – “A Partial Index”

"A Partial Index"
Image by Craig Burgess

Courtesy of Daine Singer Gallery

"A Partial Index" Detail
Image by Craig Burgess

Courtesy of Daine Singer Gallery

Space and design are some of the themes that artist MCQUALTER is exploring in this exhibition at Daine Singer.

Directly painted on the walls are figures in various active positions. Some are bent over with masking tape contemplating an area; other figures are squatting, standing and surveying the space. What draws these figures together is the masking tape that is painted between the figures. To call it a mural is not accurate although it covers the walls from ceiling to floor. The piece is cleverly done utilising the actual space of the gallery, while questioning the meaning and concept of space.

It’s not entirely clear what these figures are designing or even the project or event that they are musing.

I believe the act of contemplation is the subject the artist is exploring and how this relates to an initial idea of space and how this could transform and end with an unanticipated result. Which is the beauty of thought and the way we have to readjust our preconceived project or purpose to suit an environment.

I also liked the fact that the figures that are painted are transparent and could be washed over easily. You got the feeling that like the project or designed space; this piece could be removed easily and in a state of transit, reflecting again the theme of space.

27JAN – 3MAR

http://www.dainesinger.com/ 

Angela DE LA CRUZ – “Transfer”

ANGELA DE LA CRUZ

Compressed (Orange), 2011

Oil on aluminium

130 x 80 x 60 cm

Courtesy of the artist and Anna Schwartz Gallery

Crumpled, depleted, mangled and deflated metal never looked so alive!

The new exhibition by Spanish born artist DE LA CRUZ is a triumph of vivid orange and ripe red paint. As l enter the gallery my eyes are instantly drawn to the two collapsed rectangle metal forms on the wall. The first titled Compressed (Orange) and the other titled Compressed (Red). The shape reminds me of a once used industrial air conditioning shaft. One hangs at it’s own accord painted a bright orange and the other painted a red. The tension of the metal where it has been bent and rippled is painted and seems to have a movement frozen in time. The colours make you want to caress an imagined warm surface, although logically it is cold. It looks as though these discarded forms once transferred either air or liquid from one end to another. These pieces are now out of order and are dissected as a form of appreciation.

I enjoyed the pieces “Extension 3(Red/Orange)” that l initially missed at the entrance. I small canvas freshly painted in red and orange was juxtaposed to a faded canvas that could have been a flag or a once triumphant symbol. It could have been the new complemented by the old. I mean this by comparing an entity formed by people, which is successful. The new generation continue to make it a success by the transfer of knowledge. I am thinking laterally in my own interpretations of these works.

The other piece l enjoyed named “Deflated 21 (Red)” was the canvas that had been stretched, primed and painted. It looked like it had been taken off its stretcher and hung lifeless on the wall by a nail. It hung like a dishevelled coat on a stand. It made me think that without the strength of the frame, the painted canvas looked limp and unresponsive. To put it in perspective, it was a painted canvas and not a living thing. I have been deceived and that l believe, is the exploration of the exhibition.

Each piece needed to be shown together as this strengthened the theme. In my opinion, the artist was dissecting objects in relation to its usefulness. The colours used seemed to emphasise the artistic composition. The reoccurring theme of transfer could be seen though out the show. For me as a viewer, it made me re evaluate my notions of an objects use.

4FEB – 17MAR

www.annaschwartzgallery.com 

Silvana MANGANO and Gabriella MANGANO – “Shapes for Open Spaces”

The latest work of this duo comprises of four video works shown on four large screens that hang in succession.

The first screen titled “Monument for Air” has what looks to be the sky with rose tinted clouds. A black material is sporadically thrown into the air punctuating the serene sky above. A piece of haunting music plays on cycle, which is broken by the sound of material being lifted by the air.

The second video work titled “Monument for Monument” begins with the camera scanning the top of a desolate area, which looks to be on a sea cliff. There appears to be a partly demolished historical landmark made of bricks. The camera then scans down towards the long unkempt grass as it blows in the wind. A body in a black envelope lifts up and down as though it too is being directed by the wind. I get a feeling of emptiness, isolation and coldness.

My interpretation of these pieces is an artistic ode to the elements. The hypnotic soundtrack contributes to the overwhelming feeling of meditation and contemplation which links all four works together. Each video work seems to represent a component of nature. I enjoy the contradiction that the work signifies both the unpredictable behaviour and beauty of the elements.  I also got the feeling of the immense space contrasted by the black human forms. Hence the title of the exhibition.

Until the 17^th of Dec.

http://www.annaschwartzgallery.com/

Ranjani SHETTAR – "Dewdrops and Sunshine"

The National Gallery of Victoria has opened a new exhibition space, which will host contemporary artists. Ranjani Shettar is the first artist to be exhibited. What a fantastic artist to showcase. I was truly in wonder and excitement to see this artist’s pieces. I would have to say it was one of the best exhibitions l have seen this year.

The artist Shettar has constructed seven installations in all. Each piece varies in both material and form. There where two pieces that l was in awe of and that is not to say the other pieces were of lesser content or brilliance.

The first titled “Heliotropes” were long toffee coloured tentacles protruding from the wall. They were comparable to life size exaggerated hollow spaghetti growing organically out of the wall. The piece made me think of a magnified skin with hair similar to that seen in illustrated body encyclopaedias. There was also a feeling these limbs were being blown by a natural element such as wind as they all lay in one direction. This piece was made out of opaque latex.

 “Touch me not” is the second sculpture that begins on one wall and took over a corner. It was like a beautiful fungus or coral that spread to give an illusion of movement. It looked like it was constructed by small rounded pins made of a ceramic head that where the size of a cherry. There would have been hundreds of the pins in all and they are grouped together by forming various directions. It resembled sweat beads on skin.

These pieces are also complemented by the shadows made from the installations. It emphasizes the organic form. The materials the artist uses is also significant in the works. The descriptions of the work are my own interpretations and that is the beauty of these installations, as they could represent various amplified objects.

This exhibition by artist Ranjani Shettar is a must see.

On until 26th of Feb, 2012.

http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/exhibitions/ranjani-shettar 

Sean BAILEY – “Union of Opposites”

These were a series of small collages on board with various areas painted. Each work painted various colours as though the board were a mixing palette. The difference here was that the blocks of paint were the objective rather than the constructed image. I felt that the paint was obtrusive and l wanted to scratch away to see what was underneath. There were 25 pieces in all.

I felt l was being told a story or it was a link the chain of events to come to a conclusion. The exhibition seemed blurry and convoluted. I would have liked to see a time lapsed documentation projected of the artist working on each of the pieces. The painted areas displayed some sort of code or symbols. It seemed each piece was marked in a crude and unsympathetic fashion. It could have been two artists working together. 

The more l look at these works online and reminded of what l viewed at the gallery, they seem to coerce me. They did need to be viewed as a whole as mentioned it was a sequence. By reading the titles, they could have been banal daily acts or small fragments of ideas. I would like to view this exhibition again to get a better understanding.

On until the 19Nov.

http://www.dainesinger.com/

John NIXON – “EPW: Silver”

A steamy hot day in Melbourne and l feel instantly cooled down and refreshed as l am greeted by the ever so cool work of John Nixon’s latest dialogue of “EPW: Silver”. 

These paintings consist of various sizes of canvases and chipboard painted mainly in enamel silver chrome dispersed with white, black and red. The canvases are propped unconventionally, sometimes arranged on top of each other, vertically protruding from the wall, up above eye level or simply made in 3 d as a vertical canvas box.

The artist Nixon is continuing his Experimental Painting Workshop or “EPW”. The project begun in 1995.

In my opinion, the artist is deconstructing conventional painting both in product and sentiment. I believe it is the artists own off shoot of Modernism were traditional format is dispelled and experimentation of material is replaced. The artist seems to also explore the viewer’s relationship to the work.

I found myself wanting to investigate the constructed canvas by trying to stand inside the partitioned work. The subtlety of shadows made from the gallery lights on the chrome silver was also compelling. The shapes that could be seen that were made from the various coloured constructed canvases when standing back was interesting. You certainly start looking at these traditional canvases as sculptural. Each piece was named “Silver Monochrome” with the year it was made. I wonder if the exhibition was hung in chronological order, would this change the outcome or is this own traditional bias appearing? This artist is certainly prolific and l feel it would be necessary if you were to participate in an ongoing project such as this.

I look forward to the next development.

http://www.annaschwartzgallery.com/

Reko RENNIE - “Neo Geo”

The back gallery has three large canvases printed with equilateral diamonds in 2-3 different colours dispersed with foil to give a shiny texture. The centrepiece being a large spray-can with a pattern on the label that complements and is the reverse of the background. The spray-can is printed in a bronze colour that defines it from the background.

In the centre of the room are three totem poles of bronze spray-cans. They where etched in a similar fashion to the screen-printed image on the paintings. They spoke for themselves standing like ancient forms with engraved script to be rediscovered in years to come.

“Black Magic” was a neon sign in the corner. It lured me and could be pictured on a lonely stretch of road in inland NSW on a dark night. Driving past paddocks and silent bush. This sign appears in neon colours as a symbol of power and presence in a colonised exterior.

The bio tells me that the diamond pattern used in on the canvases is a traditional use of the Kamilaroi indigenous heritage that Rennie is from. I am also informed that the name of the exhibition “Neo Geo” or Neo-Geometric Conceptualism relates to a New York art movement in the 1980’s. l discovered that it was a movement that was a mix of conceptional, graffiti and pop art. These forms can be seen in these paintings.

My first impression of the canvases for me where almost like pop art signs or advertising. The diamond pattern with the foil drawing me towards the spray-can like a psychedelic vortex. To me, the spray –can represented his tool of language in contemporary Australia. He was also drawing on his heritage by the traditional use of scribing and marking represented in contemporary form by use of screen print. All three pieces where titled “Message Stick” and differentiated by a colour. I missed the fourth piece, which was hanging in the front of the gallery.

On until 5NOV.

http://rekorennie.com/

http://www.diannetanzergallery.net.au/