51 1The Bulletin $5. 00files.faso.us/12134/2016.pdfhas “visuality” according to Robert Nelson....

Women’s Art Register Bulletin Number 51 Summer 2012

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51Summer 2012

$5. 00

The BulletinWomen’s Art Register

Proudly supported by the City of Yarra

Ilona NelsonPennyEdition of 5 Digital print on stone 2011 30 x 30 cm framed with reclaimed timberSee page 8

Women’s Art Register Bulletin Number 51 Summer2012

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Editor’s Note

Welcome to the Bulletin #51

In this issue we have articles about contemporary artists from around Australia, we put out the call to members and associates and I was very pleased with the response. Thank you to everyone who responded to my call for articles, several people did so through the Facebook group for Women’s Art Register. The response was so good that I have a reserve of articles for the next Bulletin but please still consider contributing by forwarding any material to the Register, either in hard copy to 415 Church Street, Richmond 3121, or by email to [email protected] before the closing date 1 July 2012.

If anyone has any exhibitions or workshops planned for later in the year, please let us know so that we can include them in our next issue and on our website. We have also introduced advertising in the Bulletin, so if you know of any art related businesses who would like to advertise please ask them to contact the Register [email protected] for the charges. Members may advertise in one Bulletin per year free of charge.

I announced at the Register AGM last year that this would be my last year at the helm, well I have been persuaded to stay on with less duties than in the past, I am pleased to announce that Regina McDonald has agreed to take over as editor of the Bulletin so while I’ve been putting this one together I’ve also been writing a proceedures manual so the next edition will be brought to you by Regina, thank you Regina.

Gail StiffeEditor

Issue # 51 –ISSN 1030-9799

[THEBulletin] WOMEN’S ART REGISTER

Women’s Art Register IncRichmond Library415 Church Street Richmond, VIC 3121Telephone: 0424 333 136

Library Opening HoursMonday–Wednesday 10 am – 8 pmThursday 10 am – 6 pmFriday 1 pm – 6 pmSaturday 10 am – 3 pmSunday 2 pm – 5 pm

Register Office OpenFirst, third and fifth Tuesday of the month 10 am- 3 pm or by appointment.

CommitteeGail Stiffe, Rosemary Mangiamele, Jan Delaney, Christina Turner, Jane Henry, Antje Bauer, Sally Northfield, Clare Saunder

MembershipIncludes borrowing rights to slides and information folders and issues of the Bulletin as published.Costs: Individual $35Individual Concession $25Institution $55 Individual renewal: 1 July each yearInstitution renewal: 1 January each year

ContributorsEditor: Gail StiffeWriters: Ilona NelsonCarmel O’ConnorJoy Elizabeth LeaEv HalesAvril ThomasMary Tokatlidis and Debra LuccioAnnemarie SzeleczkyDenise Keele-bedfordMargo HumphriesKay LiptonJosephine PitittoOlivia Alexander

Cover Image:Ilona Nelson PennyEdition of 5 Digital print on stone 2011 30 x 30 cm framed with reclaimed timber


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In This Issue

News from the RegisterGail Stiffe

Since my last report we have received our Preservation Needs Assessment and acquitted our grant from the National Library. We are considering applying for the next round of NLA grants and would welcome any assistance from members.

Ilona Nelson has given our website a long overdue facelift and has set up a Twitter account. The Twitter and Facebook accounts are now managed by Fay Gilbert but Ilona is finding it difficult juggling her two young sons, her art practice and the website, she is currently writing a manual for maintaining so if you know of anyone with web designing skills who can spend a couple of hours a month we would love to hear from them.

We have set the date for next annual meeting, it will be held on Tuesday 27 March from 6.30 pm. We invite members to come along with one or two recent artworks to share with the group and once again we will offer our interstate

members the oportunity to send images of two recent works for our website. I will be sending out the notices very soon and we would love to see you at the meeting.

The other thing we have done recently is to set up a Paypal account for the Register, no easy task, just ask our treasurer Christina Turner who spent many hours on our behalf sorting out the nitty gritty. You will see on the website a button calling for contributions to the Register and another one for paying memberships. We will discuss at the AGM the possibility of cancelling our credit card facility, it costs us $22 per month plus a percentage of all sales, Paypal also charges a percentage but there are no monthly charges.

I would also like to remind those who receive a hard copy of this Bulletin that you can see the full colour version on our website www.womensartregister.org, it is in the members section that is password protected, if you don’t have the password please email [email protected].

3 News from the Register Gail Stiffe

4 A Shoebox Full of Dresses Ilona Nelson

5 A Book Review For Painters Carmel O’Connor

6 Beyond the Lines – Rosemary Mangiamele Joy Elizabeth Lea

8 A Work in Progress Ev Hales

10 Acclaimed Portrait Artist Avril Thomas

12 Images of The Australian Ballet Mary Tokatlidis in Conversation with Debra Luccio 15 Remembering Sarah Annemarie Szeleczky

16 Da Qing – China Denise Keele-bedford

18 Mattara Festival, Newcastle Margo Humphries

18 Opportunities

19 Symphony Kay Lipton

20 Finding Art Josephine Pititto

22 A Life in Art Olivia Alexander

23 What’s on in March


4A Shoebox Full of DressesIlona Nelson

A nostalgic photographic series by Ilona NelsonThursday 4th to Thursday 16th February 2012Exhibition opening and book launch Friday 3rd February 6-8pm

When Nelson’s mother was a child she was given a shoebox full of handmade dolls dresses each Christmas. Two family friends, crafty ladies Mrs. Burrows and Mrs. Collier, made the dresses to measure from material off cuts of clothes they had made for themselves. This tradition of handmade dresses was reignited once Nelson and her sister had their own dolls.

Nelson recently rediscovered the dolls dresses when she was sorting out old toys, deciding what would be passed down to her two young sons. When she saw the dresses there was an urgency to document them to ensure their history was not lost and forgotten, to capture past memories for future generations.

The dresses were photographed as they were found - complete with wrinkles, stains, traces of writing and holding so much history within their stitches. The photographic documentation is unobtrusive yet shows detail, allowing the dresses to tell you their stories.

If you listen they will tell you about the lives they have led, about the women in your family and about your carefree childhood. They invoke comparisons of culture and society, handmade verses mass-produced, representation

of women then and now, and question materialism.

a shoebox full of dresses consists of 26 photographs printed onto thin stone and framed with reclaimed timber. The stone gives a slightly different finish for each individual piece meaning that all dresses are unique and the reclaimed timber bears the marks of history, as do the dresses.

A full colour book has been created from the photographs and the exhibition opening will double as a book launch.

Brunswick Street Gallery322 Brunswick StreetFitzroy VIC 3065 (Melways ref 44 A5)http://www.bsgart.com.auOpen 10am – 10pm Tuesday to SundayPhone 0419 390 478

Mrs CollierEdition of 5 Digital print on stone 2011 30 x 30 cm framed with reclaimed timber

PollyEdition of 5 Digital print on stone 2011 30 x 30 cm framed with reclaimed timber

RuthEdition of 5 Digital print on stone 2011 30 x 30 cm framed with reclaimed timber


5A Book Review For Painters.Carmel O’Connor 2012

The Visual Language of Painting:- An aesthetic analysis of representational technique. Robert Nelson 2010

This book is about words, up to date words that can describe contemporary art practice. Picture making is what drives Nelson to define its ever-changing paradigms through linguistic signifiers. A clever chapter by chapter analysis of representational illusionist image building. This text is not for dilettantes. Mental dexterity, wit, and a good deal of intellect divulge a systematic syntax of the English language. Fortunately, the word “painting” is locked and protected by the very tool that Nelson is a master of, the English language. The title The Visual Language of Painting - An aesthetic analysis of representational technique., is what attracted me to review this book. I believe Painting is it’s self yet it has “visuality” according to Robert Nelson. Paintings have the ability to communicate aesthetically to a variety of people a variety of ideas. Painting through representational means may use symbols to enhance themes including narrative, politics, religion, sex, etc., together with life drawing practice and colour including black and white, line and other media to produce a picture. It is not new to suggest that there are ways of reading a picture. As cultural divides expose curious painting practices it is understandable that educators wish to inform us through literary means which may impart greater pictorial understanding.

With or without principles of design, artists often begin with life drawing habits to establish a work and then with perception build on prior knowledge to produce a new picture. It goes without saying, that painting is the only sane thing to do in life. All the rest is just froth and bubble......

Read this wonderful text; then continue to eyeball your subject and paint, paint, paint. The footnotes, extensive as they are underpin academic research on the topic and so with good reason may enhance your picture making ideas. I’m not sure how much time a painter has after painting to do a little research! Google any name to be rewarded by images galore. Have your Oxford Concise dictionary ready for new words but alas formalesque has not found its way into the dictionary yet. You may buy or borrow The Formalesque by Bernard Smith 2007 to get a handle on what it means.

However, Nelson’s book is not a manual but would make a great Reader for painters. The photographer’s photographic image selection is intertwined with the painter’s picture making process through a not completely convincing understanding of what is required and what is different to each discipline. Which makes me think that another book with a focus on Photography may help the analysis within this text. Nelson may have his own reasons for blending the two disciplines. Perhaps adding an index for words such as electrification. Tidy up or delete a few words on photography. Weave the discussion on additive and subtractive light, reflected and absorbed colour plus save the thoughts on light and dark in a new chapter where painting may analyse these issues without the camera lenses doing the mixing. The brush, the extension of the artists hand has been undervalued in the book. The brush at rest and loaded; a brush for oils, acrylics, watercolour, makeshift and ingenious, plus the dangerous practise of finger painting and other fleshy stuff would make good reading, if written by Nelson, the master.

Other fleshy stuff is illuded to in a poetic sense in a latter chapter of the book as Nelson displays his prowess as a poet. A few thoughts as you turn the pages. “Open time” is lost in “Wet on Wet” and glazes. Colour; Chevreil, what about black, black and black which brings me to the dust cover - Black paintings, Kalorama by Mary Tonkin is the only image you get to see, scaled down and cropped at that. Mark Tansey an American painter gets a pat on the back from Nelson, for me it’s “Boy’s Own” stuff. As Robert Hughes in American Visions also is impressed with this artist as he describes Triumph of the New York School painted in 1984.

The most outstanding single idea is that Nelson insists you take on his ideas about the “Visual language” as he rounds off almost every chapter with this same persuasive banter. As I read the words the word sophist was too loud in my own thinking. Read it and let me know what you think? [email protected]

All in all it’s a great read. You can read the book at the Baillieu Library, Melbourne University and Monash Caulfield campus or purchase a copy from Monash Caulfield book shop for $49.95 but hurry only a few copies left. Also on sale at Collected Works Level 1, Nicholson Building 37 Swanston Street, Melbourne 9654 8873


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Beyond the LinesJoy Elizabeth Lea

Searching for real art and real coffee. Found; just this combination at Decoy Café – Bar – Gallery at 303 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, where, instead of the customary Sauvignon Blanc or Shiraz, I sipped on freshly ground and brewed Ethiopian Yirgacheff coffee whilst perusing and reviewing this recent exhibition of Rosemary Mangiamele’s evocative and imaginative works on paper.

Rosemary Mangiamele’s recent intuitive abstract work is a reflection of her life experience and a testament to her painting skill and handling of materials. Twentieth century artist Paul Klee (1911) is much quoted as famously stating that drawing is ‘taking a line for a walk’. Klee also believed that a painter must be a poet, a nature lover and philosopher at the same time. This recent work of Rosemary Mangiamele reflects these qualities and moves ‘Beyond The Lines’ with her use of line in works which possess the unmistakable mark making quality and often lyrical line for which this contemporary artist is renowned. Each piece is uniquely different and the attraction of the work lies not only in the use of colour but also in the journey that the eye of the viewer is asked to follow.

Whilst ‘journey’ is the appropriate word to describe the peregrination of the viewer’s eye as it follows the pathways, there is evidence of another journey, the journey of

the psychological inner life of the artist to be discovered in each work. Hence the working title of ‘Beyond the Lines’. Rosemary describes her work as that of ‘intuitive abstraction’, a way of working which facilitates the process of discovery by allowing her work to develop with an evocative, imaginative and at times playful edge.

Work offered in this exhibition has been undertaken using acrylic or a mixed media approach and evidence of skill in painting as well as printmaking is evident in the works. Through the layering of colours and the brush strokes, images are created from the depth of her imagination and these images emerge and evolve from working the surface of the paper. A constant theme running throughout the exhibition is the artist’s inner journey inextricably intertwined with the interaction with and appreciation of nature resulting in work of an organic nature with certain pieces exuding a primal energy. Rosemary states that ‘mother earth, nature and human cultures and their cross-cultural connections, are subjects that form the basis of my paintings and bring some cohesion to my thinking’. The resulting works are the sum total of my experiences. Many of these paintings reflect a search for harmony, balance, reconciliation and peace, a search, which holds relevance for each of us in the often-chaotic times in which we live. There is a delicate merging of the external life and the internal life that allows the viewer to look through the keyhole to glimpse the secret door to the artist’s soul.

The artist’s connection to nature is evident in Rainforest Remembrance, a work that consists of many horizontal pieces of painted forest. This evokes a segmented wild forest, broken now, but with the possibility of renewal. Rich with the palette of nature this work is a comment on the artist’s concern with the disappearance of wild forests throughout the world.

A theme of nature is manifested again in Lantana: classified as a noxious weed in some parts of Australia, it is nevertheless an attractive and complicated tangle of a plant. The image is one of intricacies and of the intertwining branches. We follow the vines to the very heart of the plant symbolically into the heart of ourselves if we wish to pursue this path. In and out, over and under, light and dark, warm and cool, perhaps resonant of the journey of our lives.

The Harmony of Nature Acrylic on canvas 56 x 56 cm


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Malevolent forces of nature are pursued in Tsunami that is not only an attractive work but also a turbulent work, one that evokes the memories of the tsunami that struck the coastal areas of Japan this year. There is darkness evident which reflects the sadness the artist experienced at this time and yet there are areas of light, which evoke the hope for renewal and reconstruction as well as safety, and regeneration of the lives of the affected Japanese population.

A pleasing sense of balance and Harmony are evident in the work Pondering. Rosemary speaks of this work as reflecting of her strong connection with a recent experience at an Aboriginal women’s ceremony in the Central Desert. There is a strength and unity of line to be felt in this work and a line that invites the viewer to keep pondering the twists and pathways to be followed. Especially engaging is the use of tone and colour palette.

Harmony is present in Mindfulness, a harmonious work created in subtle tones of yellow and one which asks the viewer to engage with the gentle lines and pathways. The artist writes of the gentleness and calmness, which evolved from meditation as being a strong influence and inspiration for this work. Rosemary can be quoted as saying ‘Mindfulness is a result of that inner work, and is a contrast to the outside world of chaos and pressure’. Networks of pathways and connections allow a communion with nature, and with fellow human beings that may be glimpsed when contemplating this work. Perhaps one of the strongest works in this exhibition is that of Mercuric Cinnabar both strong in colour, working style and image. Evidence of calligraphic line making, use of complementary colours and the rich visual pathways add to the evocativeness of this work. Figures and creatures emerge and recede as they vie with one another to connect with, and capture, our attention to influence our viewpoint.

Interchange is about the interchange and exchange of ideas from different people and sources throughout our life. This work is evidence of the experimental styles in which Rosemary works. There is evidence of the calligraphic line and image making which is an integral part of this exhibition, and which are intrinsic to Rosemary Mangiamele’s intuitive art making. This current exhibition resonates

Tsunami Acrylic & ink on paper 75 x 54cm

Lantana Acrylic on paper Size : 71 x 95 cm


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with a love of nature, and a philosophical viewpoint of care and nurturing for the whole of mankind.

Keys To Inner ExplorationMixed media on paper96 x 74 cm

A Work in ProgressEv Hales

Working as an artist is a fascinating occupation. Each day is a blank canvas and activities vary enormously as you deal with the differing demands of this career. You need to be a bookkeeper, marketing representative (for yourself) event planner, promotional scout, creator of fabulous works, keeper of records, courier for your works and that is just the regular jobs that happen frequently. All of that as well as the essence of being an artist, a creative, free thinker and innovative crafts person.

Last year I decided to add author to my list of tasks. I decided to write about my creative process and the journey it has taken me on. What a revelation. I thought I was pretty aware of how I thought and worked but this project has opened my eyes to some essential aspects related to how I think about things and what attracts me to certain imagery. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

I came to the conclusion that I believe the realist mode of art is attractive because it is the strongest, clearest form of communication, from one person to another. It has nothing to do with being new and exciting rather it is about actually communicating with others, not just entertaining some one. This presents problems for an artist today because you must compete with a huge array of visual stimuli. It is easy for the realist work to get lost in the ever appearing newest fad and the options new technology offers. I have come to the understanding that to hold a viewer’s attention, with this seemingly simplistic approach, you must use the medium as the conduit to attract and maintain their interest. There needs to be recognition without

Beyond the Lines exhibition, Decoy Café Bar Gallery, 23 August - 21 October 2011

Rosemary Mangiamele Rosemary, an intuitive abstract artist, is influenced by nature, philosophy, human cultures and their cross-cultural connections, in her search for harmony, balance, reconciliation and peace. Her paintings are held in private collections in Australia and overseas, including New York, Italy, Ireland, France, New Zealand and Sweden. St Vincent’s Hospital have 36 of her paintings in their permanent collection. Rosemary is a member of the Women›s Art Register committee, and is Vice President of the Contemporary Art Society.


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labouring the point and then mystique via the way the medium has been used to create the imagery chosen.

I discovered the link between the natural world and the man made is all about pattern and how the natural and urban patterns work separately, in harmony sometimes and opposition at others. I realised I use this element very consciously in my work and it is the link between the disparate subjects that I paint.Exploring the interests and the way I work as well as the media I chose is the essence of this book. I have chosen this format because I have learnt an enormous amount about being an artist from reading the words of other artists. I find it fascinating to read an artist’s view and then look at what a critic has to say about the same work and this has developed an acute awareness that why a work is created and the impact it has on a viewer can be and often is completely unrelated. This is not to say that the critic and viewer have missed the point but rather that both the viewer and critic bring their own experiences that will create new chains of communication between the viewer and the painting or sculpture. So the triangle between the artwork, the artist and the viewer is never an equilateral triangle it is one that can be distorted in different ways and still be relevant. The images I work with are all related to my life. They revolve around the everyday activities we all do regularly. I also look at some of the issues confronting our society related to urban life as well as the natural world.

I have likened the creation of the book to a musician being involved in a whole series of concerts, with a full orchestra. I am exploring

all the media I use and covering works over a 40-year period. The book shows a whole gamut of ideas and how they fit together. It is also a work of art in the design and presentation of the ideas and images. As the whole thrust of my work is about pattern, (similarity and differences), the design of this book is based around this idea. Creating a sense of wholeness but constant surprise as you turn each page, not quite knowing what you will find on the next. I have discovered that being a publisher is more scary than holding an exhibition because the product produced will be around for ever and therefore it is more important to get it “right’.

I hope that instead of continually doing something that puts me in the space of having to “learn’ a whole lot of new things I will actually be able to use what I have learnt without having to start from scratch. I have enjoyed the process enormously but am so ready to pick up the brushes and explore a new collection of ideas in paint that have been percolating whilst this book has been evolving. One of the quotes from the book is: “ An artist’s voice resonates when it states a view with honesty and clarity. A body of work gives the artist a voice”

If you care to see my images and hear my voice at the same time watch out for “Ev Hales- A Work in Progress” that can be found at Readings, Eltham Book Shop, Seniors Art Supplies or AGRA Gallery as well as online from www.evhales.com or contact [email protected].

Centre Hub, 14 x 14 cm Watercolour on Yupo

A Square or two. 55 x 55cm Watercolour on HP


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Acclaimed Portrait ArtistAvril Thomas

Avril Thomas is a South Australian Artist. Her works can be found in Hong Kong, the US and in almost every state of Australia in private and corporate collections and at the National Portrait Gallery. Born in Malaysia 1956, Avril Thomas has enjoyed a lifetime of drawing. She started her working life as a nurse but through successes with her artwork she became a full time practicing artist. Portraiture is usually her focus, in charcoal, graphite, pastel and oil, all with a tonal realist style.

Her portraits vary in nature from formal academic portraits, to more casual pieces portraying the subjects in their work environment. “When doing a portrait I like to tell a story about the person. A portrait can be about not only their physical being but also about the setting in which they are portrayed. Adding references to things the subject is interested in, or objects that tell something of their story becomes a collaborative process that is extremely rewarding for the subject as well for me.

Whether it is a formal portrait or something more casual the piece then has an enduring quality that speaks of the person within. The fantastic thing about portraiture is being able to meet wonderful people, getting a small glimpse into their life”

Avril Thomas was commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery to undertake the portrait of the Governor of South Australia, (Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson AC CVO MBE) after her portrait of South Australian MP and Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Downer was a finalist in the 2005 Archibald Prize.

Thomas painted the Governor in a number of sittings at Government House, completing some details from photographs. Included in the portrait are items referring to Jackson-Nelson’s Olympic career, and to her current position. Her kangaroo-skin running spikes lie on the table beside her. On the larger table is a favourite photograph of her grandchildren; two other photographs show the Duke of Edinburgh congratulating her after her Olympic win, and her showing off her medal. The torch is from the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and the figure is a maquette of the bronze life-sized statue of her in her hometown of Lithgow. Two exterior

Commission by Flinders University - Vice Chancellor Anne Edwards Oil on canvas 4’ x 3’

Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson AC CVO MBE oil on canvas 6’ x 5’6” commissioned by National Portrait Gallery


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her the insight and understanding to undertake this project with a sensitivity and confidence. The Theatre Works exhibition was on display as part of the South Australian Living Artists Festival 2009. The response to the pieces was very powerful on so many levels. The reaction from the nursing staff was emotional, they understood what was said visually, that Yes…. I am part of the team. I am part of this world… and I matter. The Patients and visitors alike were fascinated to see what happens behind

closed doors and it started many opportunities for conversation about what happens in theatres. Many were amazed at the number of people working in the theatres; a lot more people are involved in a case than just the surgeon and anaesthetist. ABC Stateline program aired a segment about the show.There is a rich history of this kind of art, with many books written on the subject. Pieces from this show have been used in a book that will come out next year.This show was followed by another major project as Avril was commissioned by the University of Adelaide School of Medicine to present their past graduates in an exhibition during their 125th celebrations these are people who are at the top of their field, who do extraordinary work not only here in Adelaide but nationally and internationally.

As Medicine can encompass many disciplines, she traveled from Port Augusta to Norlunga capturing these extraordinary people in the environment they have trained for and have spent their lives dedicated to. The images ranged not only in the teaching environment at the school but in clinics, pathology labs, theatres, helicopter rescue, as well as in the bush. Because of the time period and the breadth of the project, She enlisted another artist and they produced 59 pieces 42 of which

“It’s a wrap” oil on canvas 2’6” x 2’ - “Theatre Works” Exhibition

details demonstrate the portraitist’s prerogative of adapting the real to encapsulate a mood or exploit her own skills. The view is of the sweeping drive to the front door of Government House from the west – not the outlook from the room in which the sitter is depicted, but chosen by the artist to emphasise Her Excellency’s role.One major project was a commission by Flinders Medical Center as artist in residence she produced a suite of paintings and drawings depicting the intensity, the compassion and dedication of staff working in the theatres. The exhibition “Theatre Works” was an intensive project with Avril producing 42 paintings and drawings, which captured the ‘choreography’ of surgical procedures in this Art in Health at FMC project. Avril’s experience as a nurse gave

“Compassion” oil on canvas 2’6” x 2’ - “Theatre Works” Exhibition


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were Avril’s works. The pieces were exhibited during many of the 125th Celebration functions, as well as at Bonython Hall for the major exhibition “A Day in the Life of Medicine”.

Avril has also done a range of academic portraits for Flinders University, South Australia and Monash University in Victoria. Other notable portraits include Anne Wills, 16 times Logie winner, Cheryl Bart, first mother daughter team to climb Mt Everest, and Premier of South Australia Mike Rann amongst many others.

Professor Derek Frewin AO – “Results” oil on canvas 2’6” x 2’ Longest serving Dean of the Adelaide University school of Medicine – Speciality Heart specialist - “A Day in the Life” of Medicine collection

Images of The Australian BalletMary Tokatlidis in Conversation with Debra Luccio

How did you become involved with The Australian Ballet and why was it so important for you to work with them?

The importance of working with such an accomplished and professional organisation such as The Australian Ballet is immeasurable. I have been very fortunate to have worked with great dancers over the course of my career. Watching such incredible talent is constantly inspiring. The quality of the dancers means that I am being presented with movements and shapes that are performed to perfection and as the choreographer intended. An amazing dancer is quite breathtaking. My introduction to The Australian Ballet came through having one of the retired members of their board visit an exhibition of my work. He had a strong response to the artwork and offered to introduce me to the company and organise an interview with David McAllister, Artistic Director. How has your experience with The Australian Ballet directly inspired this new body of work?

The Australian Ballet Company itself is inspiring and I felt incredibly privileged to have been a part of that. Inspiration is derived from many aspects of a dance company and not simply from the visual impact of the dancers. Watching the dancer’s push themselves to perfection and to see them support and encourage each other is wonderful. Hearing the Director, choreographers and assistants give direction to the dancers, such as describing what to ‘feel’, how to move and understand the weight of their body and to watch the dancers take the performance to yet another level, is an uplifting and energizing experience. In the same breath, it’s daunting in the expectation I have on myself to produce work that is at a quality that reflects the excellence of the company. That expectation however is also the impetus to push my own boundaries and abilities. Has working with The Australian Ballet differed from your experiences with other dance companies?

The Australian Ballet is a very large and complex company. However I never felt the enormity of the company working with the dancers, or from the staff, as every experience


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or contact I had was incredibly warm and ‘family’ like. The difference from other companies was that constant ongoing rehearsals were available for me to view from morning till night as multiple leads rehearsed sections of the performances. I found myself forgetting to eat and staying in studios the entire day, simply because I could. The New York City Ballet is also a very large company but my experience with them was very different. I sat in the rehearsals in the theatre for limited times each day and visited the School of American Ballet. My experience with The Australian Ballet has been more personal. How does your method of observing and sketching dancers for hours while quietly hidden in the corner assist your creative process?

I could never give enough credit to how much the experience of watching and drawing the dancers in their studio helps me. The intensity of the visual stimulus can be almost overwhelming and I feel like I am actually absorbing the energy. Even though I can’t possibly remember each movement, the memory of the experience stays with me. Sometimes, as I watch the dancers, I simply do not take my eyes off them as they move but my hand is constantly sketching and capturing the moment. When I am not sketching, I am either observing the dancers or taking photographs. When I am back at my studio, I look at these drawings and photographs and instantly I am back in the moments and almost feel the dancer pushing their body. I remember words and expressions that the director/assistants use to describe the emotion the dancer is to convey for the performance, or the way they need to shift their weight to perfect a movement. This means I have more involvement and more experience to add to my artwork. What inspires you the most – watching dancers in rehearsals or dancers during a performance?

For me personally, watching the dancers in rehearsals is most inspiring. To have the privilege of seeing a dancer develop and perfect a performance, to watch the discovery and to see the shift of weight, shape and form is incredible. I do love surprises, and I am always surprised with the dancer’s ability to learn and remember a passage so quickly and so well. My favourite process to creating artwork is to draw the dancers during rehearsals, then see a performance without pen or paper and indulge

myself in the evening of simply watching and being immersed in the performance. Whenever I am able, I would add into my ‘ideal’ process time to photograph the dancers in dress rehearsal, as it is a magical thing to work from photos of dancers in full dress and makeup with evocative lighting. Dancers can portray various emotions through depictive and expressive movements. How does that translate into your own artwork?

When the dancers are rehearsing, their entire body expresses the emotion of the performance. When I sit in the studio watching them I see every part of their body responding to an emotion, from their face to their fingertips. Their ability to physically extend their bodies into shapes that communicate so much is astounding. It is important to me that I capture something expressive or dynamic in my work. To be inspired by the extensions and forms that the dancers can physically express with their bodies is exciting. When watching the dancers I see lines and shapes that inspire me so I try to capture these in my own work to create movement and dynamics. Dance is an art that encompasses many of the senses. A performance can steal you away into another world filled with music, light, colour, movement and emotion. A performance is a highly visual experience and even though the experience can live with you for a lifetime, it can only be seen for the time you are at the performance. I hope to capture part of my

Ty (2011) Oil on Linen (Detail) 76 x 92cm (Ty King-Wall, The Australian Ballet, Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly)


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Melbourne-based artist Debra Luccio’s new exhibition, Images of The Australian Ballet, at Steps Gallery Carlton, will run from 6 March to 1 April. The exhibition will coincide with the company’s historic 50th Anniversary celebrations in 2012. The Australian Ballet’s Artistic Director, David McAllister, will officially open the exhibition on Sunday 11 March after having his portrait painted earlier in the year by Luccio for the 2012 Archibald Prize.2012 also marks McAllister’s 10th Anniversary as Artistic Director. Images of the Australian Ballet features over twenty five artworks including Luccio’s highly recognizable and award winning monotypes along with a series of drypoints and oil paintings inspired by her time with the company. A highlight of the exhibition is a large charcoal drawing, ‘Time Lapse’, capturing McAllister several times in the one image as he moves around the studio in class, issuing instruction to the dancers. The key to this new creative output was Luccio’s time spent with the dancers filling countless sketchbooks with drawings. Luccio

experience in painting so it can live with us for longer. For me personally, before anything, dance is about the body – the dancer’s ability to use their body to express so much – and the rest is a bonus.

The freshness and fluidity of these new monotypes gives a sense that you created them in the moment while watching the dancers. How have you achieved this?

I think that my time with The Australian Ballet has influenced me more than what I am consciously aware of. When I am working on my monotypes I find that I am working with a greater determination. I want to keep my lines and marks fresh and energetic. Even from my first marks of rolling thin layers of colour onto the plate, I have decided to allow those marks and movements to help tell the story even further. I do put a great deal of pressure on myself, but as soon as I start rolling the selected inks onto the copper sheet, I disappear into another world. Memories of my experiences seem to come into play and I feel determined to try to capture angles and shapes as each inflection of the dancer’s body is telling me something about the rehearsal and performance. The physical process itself allows me to push the artwork even further, letting the marks created by the roller emphasise the movement of the dancer. Working with a sense of self-imposed urgency in the studio has helped me to not ‘over-think’ the artwork, but instead has allowed the marks I create to remain fresh. What inspired the introduction of new colours and a much looser technique of application in this new body of work?

First and foremost I am always inspired by what I see. My choice of colour is often determined by the colours that I am surrounded by. In my photos of the rehearsals, colours the dancers are wearing, or colours in the background all significantly impact my choice of ink colour I will use. For instance, the studios at The Australian Ballet are light with cream walls, brown barres against the expansive mirrors and light grey floors with large windows. The blue of the windows largely influenced Butterfly in Blue (2010) Monotype on Velin Arches paper 75 x 52.5cm (Miwako Kubota & Vivienne Wong, The Australian Ballet, Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly). When I saw the lovely blue of the windows I felt it reflected the emotion of the dancers, so I selected turquoise, cobalt, and phthalo blue, along with other

colours, and applied them so that the blue dominated. The light cream walls of the dance studio have encouraged me to be more sparing with the etching ink – to allow the light of the paper to be evident to help reflect the light of the studio in which the dancers are rehearsing.

After the Rain (2011) Oil on Linen 35 x 35cm (Robyn Hendricks & Rudy Hawkes, The Australian Ballet, Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain©)


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sat on the floor in a corner of The Australian Ballet studio watching rehearsals of both contemporary and traditional productions, including Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly and Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain©. Debra Luccio is an award winning international artist whose work is represented in various collections both nationally and internationally including The New York Public Library. In 2010 Luccio was invited to exhibit a major solo exhibition at the Australian Consulate General in New York City. Luccio won the 2009 CPM National Print Award recognising her as one of Australia’s foremost monotype artists. Debra LuccioImages of The Australian Ballet6 March – 1 April 2012Opening Night: 6-8pm Sunday 11 March 2012Guest Speaker: David McAllister AM, Artistic Director, The Australian BalletFree Artist Talk: 3pm Sunday 18 March. Bookings essential. STEPS GALLERY 62 Lygon Street, Carlton South VIC 3058Gallery Hours: Tue-Fri 11-4pm, Sat-Sun 10-5pmContact: Mary Tokatlidis, Assistant/Curator P: 0448 026 643E: [email protected] W: www.debraluccio.com

Reiko (2011) Monotype on Velin Arches paper 58 x 80cm (Reiko Hombo, The Australian Ballet, Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly)

Remembering Sarah Annemarie Szeleczky November 7th 2011

It was 1997 when as a mature age student I enrolled to learn Animation at Victorian College of the Arts Film School, Melbourne. There was a group of enthusiastic people ready to pass on their craft of filmmaking. Sarah Watt was one of these people, a pleasant person with the biggest smile. She was always ready to listen to any question you might have about your script and how to overcome any creative or technical problem. She would ask you the right questions to help you discover what to do next. One might say, “Well, than that is the role of a teacher.” Yes, indeed it is and she with her open friendly manner was willing to share her experience and expertise.

Sarah’s work was very personal and natural, depicting her own experiences and that of friends. Because her films have the personal emotional truths, her work resonates and is liked by others. She was not afraid to show her vulnerabilities and fears and the joy some things gave her. She observed everything around her and was able to express nuances of everyday life. Her animated film Small Treasures 1995 won best short film at Venice Film Festival. It is a fluid, hand-painted animation depicting the sad loss of her first child.

Sarah was shooting her first film Look Both Ways, starring her husband William McInnes. In the story, he is confronted by news that he has cancer and how he deals with the devastating news. During filming she herself was diagnosed with breast cancer. Bravely she finished the film. It won several AFI awards in 2005.

My Year Without Sex, her second live-action film made in 2009 was sad, but with humor and hope. The film was a natural and keenly observed story of a young wife and mother of two children who has to deal with a brain tumor, who is trying to live a normal life.

Sadly Sarah’s cancer returned and claimed her. She passed away as she wished she would, with her loving husband and children by her side.

I will always remember Sarah for her big smile and her generosity and support. She will be missed.


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Da Qing – ChinaArtist-In-Residence 2011Denise Keele-bedford

Da Qing in Heilongjiang province China is sited about 200klms North West of the capitol Harbin. Harbin is world famous for the annual Ice Sculpture Festival, more information at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin_International_Ice_and_Snow_Sculpture_Festival

In April 2011 I was offered a two-month residency at Da Qing. After negotiations we agreed that I would reside at the Dapu International Art Center in Da Qing during the months of July and September. I was unavailable in August due to commitments in Melbourne.

Da Qing (Big Celebration) was founded in 1959 to house workers extracting oil and gas from the Da Qing oilfield. The streets of Da Qing city are amass with oil pumps that quietly pump away days on end pulling the ‘black gold from underground. Oil pumps are located throughout the city in school grounds, parks, shopping centers, urban living districts and beside the waterways. Da Qing is also famous as ‘city of a hundred lakes’ set on and surrounded by beautiful wetlands, hot springs and vast grasslands. The wetlands are home to many species of bird, fish and plant life. It is on the Siberian Crane migratory pathway.

On the 3rd July three International artists and one Chinese artist departed from Beijing taking the Northern Highway to Heilongjiang Province. Zheng Xuewu, http://www.zhengxuewu.com/ coordinator of the residency program drove. Peter Kocak Slovakian Printmaker, Emily Orzech USA print maker and

myself arrived in Da Qing via Harbin on 4th July to a welcoming committee waiting at the Toll Gate. We then drove to the Da Qing airport to collect Korean Installation artist Jin Nan Wu (Kim Namo).

The Dapu International Art Center is located on the East side of Da Qing within a University District and sited close by the Opera House, Library and Da Qing Development Museum. It is a new purpose built center of five floors constructed with three legs in the form of an ‘E’. Each leg is an open hollow with clear skylight, ringed by studios. We were introduced to our 70sqm studios on the fourth floor, that include basic comforts (bed, desk, wardrobe, chair) working bench, easel and individual bathroom.

The focus of the residency was for International artists to create artworks in response to the various environments of Da Qing, to interact with artists, including artist presentations, open studios, exhibitions and collaboration. The first several days were spent orienting with the space visiting sites ,gathering materials, meeting artists and on 6th July we were engaged and invited as Professors at the Da Qing Normal University participating in an International Art Exhibition and Art Forum.

I was invited as artist-in-residence to introduce my style of installations to the community and

Lines and Light

A Personal Perspective


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artists. The art departments within the schools, colleges and universities teach traditional Chinese art, calligraphy, printmaking and realist western two-dimensional artwork. Sculpture is a separate study and installation is virtually not known.

The building is a concrete box form with light wells and a lot of steel railings, concrete rendered brick columns and steel windows and doors. There are many geometric hard edged lines contrasting with brilliant light and shadows that move across the interior structure throughout the day. I was intrigued and inspired by the shifting light and shadows.

Artist Statement for ‘Lines and Light’ - When arriving at the centre I found a series of timber crates. They are the residual of packaging used to send delicate ceramics across China. In my eyes these crates reflect the interior architecture of the Dapu Art Center. They contrast in material to the metal balustrade, yet the organized geometric structures mimic lines of design in the open space inside the building. The crates, in comparison to the smooth, tactile, evenly painted balustrade and skylight, are not at all tactile. They are rough saw cut and require caution to touch. The crates when placed within the open space on the first floor of the Art Center come to life as the sun moves slowly from East to West in the late morning. At that time there becomes a lively interaction

between elements natural, constructed and found. Shadows light and reflections interplay.

The crates were used for various installations in different locations throughout the building and changed within the object itself. Some of the local university students assisted to line the crates with calligraphic practice paper to create the installation ‘A Personal Perspective’.

Several of the crates created a table and chair setting titled ‘He Cha’ (drink tea)These can be viewed on my website: www.denisekeele-bedford.com under galleries/Da Qing Residency 2011.

In response to the wetlands and greater environment of Da Qing an installation ‘Flight’ was installed spanning three floors. I took many photographs whilst visiting the wetland areas and a selection of these became the images adhered to laser cut acrylic stylized birds suspended within the light well. More images can be viewed at the gallery website.

The residency at Da Qing gave me the opportunity to work with local businesses, artisans, students, artists and to interact with local community. Response to my artwork, creative process, concepts and presentations were mixed. People were pleased to interact and learn about my art practice. As mentioned installation art is a new form of art making for the artists and public in Da Qing. Through conversation at Open Studios, drinking tea, and meal times I was told that they generally had difficulty understanding this type of art making but found it opened new ways of thinking for them.

For more information check the gallery on my website and the Dapu International website. http://www.dapuinternational.org/

He Cha (Drink Tea)

Flight


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Mattara Festival, NewcastleMargo Humphries Margo Humphries was selected as one of the ten artists in the Mattara Festival’s Inaugural Outdoor Art Exhibition and her work “Look up in the Sky Tonight”, was draped over Newcastle Panthers Stadium. The buildings selected throughout Newcastle form an artist trail, guiding you through the city, as Newcastle becomes an outdoor art gallery. Newcastle Panthers was the first installation (and most difficult with traffic management and crane) and was No. 3 on the Art Trail. The canvas was installed on Wednesday 28 September 2011 and measures 4.8m high x 7.5m wide. The Mattara Festival Outdoor Art Gallery is the first art gallery of this kind in Australia. The artworks in artist trail were selected as they embody the lifestyle, spirit and community of Newcastle & will pay homage to local artists and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mattara. The art trail ran from 1 - 9 October 2011

My slightly surreal artwork loosely explores the relationships that we have with each other, where we belong and what we do. Mystical characters floating and coming together represent this and a built environment surrounds them. The result is a painting that is both intriguing and otherworldly. My artwork is abstract enough to allow the viewer to perceive these are urban beings that are connecting. These beings also take on the form of large hands that are reaching out to each other, which links to Mattara, meaning hand. Also like Mattara, these denote the hand of friendship. There is a sense of convivia and automation in the painting which can relate to both the warm and welcoming community and industry found in Newcastle. The artwork leaves you with the feeling that the built environment surrounding the beings has come to life with them.” Festival website: www.mattarafestival.com.auArtist website: www.kasarndesigns.com

Margo in front of her artwork

Opportunities2012 SCOPE Galleries Art Award – Art Concerning Environment

A reminder to all artists, that guidelines and application forms for the 2012 SCOPE Galleries Art Award are now available. Entry forms can be collected from the gallery or downloaded via the website at www.scopegalleries.comThe award is a non-acquisitive $5,000 cash prize to be given to an artist addressing the theme ‘Art Concerning Environment’. Mr Guy Abrahams, Co-founder of CLIMARTE and former Director of Christine Abrahams Gallery will assist in the pre-selection of finalists and presentation of the Award.Forward Planning Dates for artists entering the AwardApril 16 Entries close at 5pmMay 6 Finalists notifiedJune 2 Award winner announced at exhibition launch. Time to be confirmedJuly 1 Award exhibition concludes at 5pm

Koko Black Art Prize

Drawing prize, free entry, entries close 27 February seehttp://www.kokoblack.com/ for more details.


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Xstrata Percival Portrait Award - Townsville

Entries close 30 March 2012 http://www.townsville.qld.gov.au/FACILITIES/GALLERIES/PERCTUCKER/Pages/percival.aspx

The Rick Amor Drawing Prize The Rick Amor Drawing Prize (the Prize) is an acquisitive drawing prize to the value of $10,000 and exhibition. The winning entry will enter the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of Ballarat. Entries close 24 Februaryhttp://www.artgalleryofballarat.com.au/exhibitions/future-exhibitions/rick-amor-drawing-prize-2012.aspx

The Melbourne Sculpture Prize 2012

The Melbourne Sculpture Prize 2012 is a $20,000 Non Acquisitive Award open to all Australian and New Zealand sculptors working in any medium. Selected finalists work will form the highlight exhibition of Art Melbourne (May 24th – 27th 2012), at the heritage listed Royal Exhibition Hall in Carlton Gardens, Melbourne. Entries close 29 Februaryhttp://www.melbournesculptureprize.com.au/about.html

SymphonyKay Lipton 2011

As with many forms of fine art, classical music often aspires to communicate a transcendent quality of emotion, which expresses something universal about the human condition. While emotional expression is not a property exclusive to classical music but also other forms of art, this deeper exploration of emotion arguably allows the best classical music to reach what has been called the sublime in art. Many examples often cited in support of this, for instance Beethoven’s setting of Schilling’s poem, “Ode to Joy” in his 9th Symphony, which is often performed at occasions of national liberation or celebration, as in Leonard Bernstein’s famously performing the work to mark the occasion of the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, and the Japanese practice of performing it to observe the New Year.

I endeavour to reach the state of the sublime in my interpretation of the great composers of classical music. I hope that the spectator will enjoy each of my art works while listening to the particular piece of music which inspired it.

Finnish woman composer Saariaho `Notes on Light’, 93 x 100 x 4cm

Kay Lipton Anton Leopold Dvořák 1841-1805 Symphony No.9 New World 93 x 93 x 4cm


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Finding ArtJosephine Pititto

Born in 1954 in Morhange France from Italian origins, I came to Australia with my coal miner father, my mother and my seven siblings. Life was changed forever as our mother went to work. It was tough. At 18 I married and moved to a farm where I had my three children and I suppose it was a beautiful life. I enjoyed the tranquillity and serenity of my surrounds, enjoyed gardening and sewing all things to bring harmony to my heart and soul. In 1985 we moved to the suburbs, different but I could still see the beauty and feel tranquillity around me. I did study pattern drafting for two years but didn’t continue with it. In 1994 I became seriously ill, which left me unable to walk and have my busy lifestyle. I accepted this with grace and carried on. In 1996 my husband suggested I attend a watercolour demonstration at our local art society. Amanda Hyatt was the artist, well that changed me, I knew as she was painting that that was what I wanted to do. I bought my first piece of art (demonstration work) and enrolled at our local Art Society, I knew nothing about art, paints and the world of art. There was one spot left in the class that had already started for the term. The tutor was Ron Muller. Watercolour is a totally magical medium; you never quite know what you are going to end up with. I won my first award six months later and since have won over 140 awards.

After two years of a two-hour class weekly, I needed space to do my own thing; I was always kind of strong willed and fiercely independent. I excelled at doing things my way, in any way I felt was ok and most of all I paint as I want and is totally instinctive. I am in a state of total absorption In 2002 I travelled to Tuscany with an art group guided by Ron Muller. That’s when I decided that the only way to capture all the strong colour was to work with oils. That was the start of my Tuscany series that have been very popular. I also paint other subject as scenes from Paris and Venice. After that trip, I travelled every year and the excitement of discovering Europe was unstoppable. In 2005 I was invited to be a resident artist in Sicily. I taught painting and held an exhibition in December 2005. In the meantime I had combined exhibitions with my husband and daughter both also artists.

Le Reve des Miserables»110cm x110cm.Ink on italian cotton.This work was done on the 40th anniversary of our arrival in Australia. It is about people who leave their home and country to follow their dream. I was so immersed in the emotion of it all that when I started I was not sure of what I was drawing but it all flowed very quickly and I could not believe the end result. I was surprised how I captured what I really thought; even the faces say it all.

AngelinaIt was meant to be my granddaughter holding a chicken as I have a nice photo. But as I started this work in March 2011, it kept on evolving. I worked at it till I was totally satisfied with the girl. Then one day I went walking


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after being busy with guests and saw the most beautiful autumn leaves. I collected and dried them then glued them on my canvas to create the final stage of Angelina. Angelina is still with me. She has won a first prize.

Apollo Bay

The next work is a watercolour that is part of 4 works I painted in 1999. We were in the process of building a new home and I was running our business on my own. So I really felt overworked and emotionally tired. But I was still painting every night till 2 am, I was so driven I could not stop. The excitement of what might evolve and my imagination of what I wanted to try kept me going. No matter how tired I felt, once I started it all vanished; I would be transported into another state of mind. My body would be numb.

I decided to paint in that robotic manner as I tried to switch off emotionally to cope on a daily basis, so I used my square ruler to draw my Apollo Bay scene and once I started it evolved. I never quite know how it’s going to end, I just follow on to what maybe a mistake or fault and turned it into something special. I always used three colours only, yellow, blue and red. That is how I achieved harmony and serenity in my work by simplifying as they say ‘less is more’.This work was done on Saunders heavy paper, Full sheet 76cmx56cm. Tuscan Poppies122cmx92cm -oil on Italian linen-Painted in 2010This is a total joy to create; I love to paint these scenes. The fields of grasses were part of my childhood, the cool summers, the flowers. Watching the wind blowing on the grasses as if there were waves. As a child I never asked questions, I always observed

Tuscan Poppies

things and imagined. I suppose I lived in a dream like state, as my father would describe me. These works are based on the landscape of Tuscany but with my childhood memories of carefree summers.

I start each work in no real order its just that I need to do it, any way with any colour, I find I have become a bit more careless but in my method it all seems to end in the same. As an artist I realise that we only so much time left and so much more that I need to do. I feel the need to keep on painting, there are ideas more dreams and imaginations that i would love to capture on canvas or paper, in ink, oil or watercolour.

A private collection is on loan to St Vincent Hospital. My work was represented by various galleries.Held demonstrations at art societies.1998 Was a Finalist for Works on Paper at the Alice Bale Awards2000 Work and tutorial published in the Australian Artist Magazine2000 AFTER THE FIRES was a finalist in the Australian Artist Magatzine competition 2003 Finalist for WOrks On Paper at the Alice Bale Awards2004 Work represented at the Affordable Art Show 2007 Best work on Paper Ivanhoe Art Show2007 Best Watercolour at the Brighton Art Show2007 !st Prize Watercolor At the Mount Waverly Art Show2007 2nd Prize for Oil royal Melbourne Show


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A Life in ArtOlivia Alexander

Olivia Alexander was born in London, England, in 1961 to Scottish parents. She travelled to Australia at the age of five on the ‘Ten Pound Pom’ Scheme and grew up in Whyalla, a semi-desert coastal town in South Australia. A far cry from the green hills of England and Scotland!

Her love of art started young, drawing cartoons was a favourite pastime. Then, as a young teen, a friend’s Mum encouraged her to draw something ‘real.’ It was then she discovered she had a natural gift and her bedroom wall became plastered with portraits and animal drawings. Four years of advanced Art in High School gave her a good grounding but her family advised her to leave school and get a ‘real’ job. Jobs were scarce in the seaside town so Olivia took off to Alice Springs in outback Northern Territory to break and train show horses. Not exactly a ‘real’ job but exciting none the less!

Marrying in 1984 and having a family put the art on hold. Then in 2001 a serious illness caused her to re-assess her life and how she wanted to spend it. Art featured high on the list. Since then, Olivia has worked hard towards a Professional art career and developing her skills, techniques and unique style. Many years of classes, such as TAFE, Advanced & Creative Drawing Class, and since 2007, Advanced Mixed Media with internationally awarded experimental artist, Barbara Spence.

Kite FlyingMixed Media on stretched canvas,60x60x3cm

Olivia has been in numerous Group exhibitions as well as Solo and Joint shows and has received recognition and awards for her works, both in Australia and overseas including Italy, France, USA and Dubai. October 2011 saw her artworks successfully exhibited at the juried, Salon d’Automne, held on the Champs-Elysees, Paris.

Her art and tutorials have been featured several times in two national magazines, ‘Australian Artist’ and ‘The Artist’s Palette”. She was accepted and published in the World Wide Art book, ‘International Contemporary Masters’ Vol 4 which led to a large group exhibition in Las Vegas in 2011. She is represented in Italy by Trevisan International Art, in Las Vegas by the Southern Nevada Museum of Fine Art Emporium and by the Kiama Art Gallery in Australia. She now resides on the beautiful South coast of New South Wales, 1-½ hours south of Sydney, where she lives with her husband and works from her home based Art Studio. Artist StatementThe Natural world has always captured my imagination. The rich, red sand of outback Australia, the azure blues of the ocean near where I live, patterns on a tree trunk left behind by peeling bark or the colours of a sunrise

Mixed Emotions’-Mixed Media on paper, 56x76cm


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Lightning Strikes Once’ -Mixed Media on acid free board, 40x36cm

playing across the rock faces on the mountains. These are what inspire me to paint. My style? Expressionistic with a touch of the Abstract! I don’t paint photo realism but rather an expression of what I see and feel about the subject. It’s straight from the heart! I strive to produce creative, expressive and original artworks. I love texture, pattern and colour and the materials I choose reflect this. I use many types of mixed media techniques, some of them specialized and very unique. Layers and more layers are built up until I have resolved and created on to the canvas, the image I have in my mind. My hope is to communicate a Place, a Time or Memory that sparks a connection between my art and the viewer.

http://OliviaAlexander.com

We Make Music’ –Relationships seriesMixed Media on stretched canvas, 61x46x3cm

What’s on in MarchA selection from around the country.

Handmark Gallery - Hobart, Tas. www.handmarkgallery.com Feb 17 to March 15 paintings by Michaye Boulter and jewellery by Anna Weber.

24hr Art NT. www.24hrart.org.au Feb 10 to March 10 (opening Fri Feb 10, 6pm) Banquet by Katie Saunders; The Line of Lode and Death of Charlie Day by Angelica Mesiti, and Window by Clare Davies.

Tincat Café Restaurant and Gallery, SA www.janickejohansen.com Feb 15 to March 11 Mind Maps, A Journey Within by Janicke Johansen.

Fortyfivedownstairs, Vic www.fortyfivedownstairs.com Feb 21 to March 3 Regarding the Face painting, etching, and drawing by Alexandra Sasse . Also, Voyeur painting by Janice Gobey.

The Oats Factory, WA. www.theoatsfactory.com.au Feb 26 to March 20 Boom – Jill Ansell, Clare Bestow, Vanessa Bradley, Louise Carre, Beba Hall, Georgina Moss, Diana Papenfus, Geraldine Pillinger, Gail Putz, and Tineke Van der Eken.

Gold Coast City Gallery, Qld www.theartscentregc.com.au Feb 11 to March 25 Heron Island Suite by Judy Watson and the Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award (2010).

Artereal, NSWwww.artereal.com.au Feb 1 to March 3 Fog by Svetlana Bailey, and Dissolve by Annamaria Dzendrevzkj.

Belconnen Arts Centre, ACT www.belconnenartscentre.com.au Feb 17 to March 4 Mycologia: The secret life of fungi by Jenny Manning, large-scale black-and-white drawings. Also, Still life: moving fragments by Louise Curham and Jo Law.

Check out the exhibitions in this Bulletin and events for International Women’s Day 8 March 2012, the theme for this year is ‘Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures ‘www.internationalwomensday.com


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