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Art travellers: overseas or in your own city

artists, Melbourne tours, New York tours, spaces
14 May 2013

It’s that time of the year again (and it’s fortunately been like this since 2008): I am about to hop on a plane and head to the United States for walk to art New York.

So this is time to re-search artists, studios and art spaces, and read cultural online newsletters. Friends have emailed new places and must go bars… and I’m trying to catch up with the latest eateries and coffee shops. All of this needs to go into the little black book before I leave Melbourne!

If you are not joining our group this year (I hope you can make it in 2014), but would like to go overseas to enjoy art, how about Asia? If I were not going to NYC my destination would be the Hong Kong International Art Fair, between 23 and 26 May. This is the first edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong.

There will be a number of Australian galleries there and it is a fabulous way to engage in the international art scene – you can get an an overview of what’s happening around the world in just 3 days! Art fairs are interesting not only because significant galleries are invited to participate, but also local galleries tend to curate strong exhibits to attract the art lovers in town.

If you have no plans to travel, why not be a traveller in your own city? These are great shows to see in Melbourne:

Anna Finlayson – Shhh (The Hexagon Trip)
Sarah Scout Presents
Level 1, 1a Crossley Street, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)
Thursday and Friday, 11am to 5pm; Saturday, 12pm to 5pm
Until 18 May

image from Rhys Lee's Still I'd Sea exhibition displayed at Utopian Slumps in Melbourne

Rhys Lee – Still I’d Sea (image above)
Utopian Slumps
Ground floor, 33 Guildford Lane, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)
Wednesday to Saturday, 12pm to 6pm
Until 25 May

Ben Quilty – The Fiji Wedding
Tollarno Galleries
Level 4, 104 Exhibition Street, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)
Tuesday to Friday, 10am to 5pm; Saturday, 1pm to 5pm
Until 1 June

White Night Melbourne: art from dusk to dawn

artists, spaces
20 February 2013

This Saturday, 23 February, from 7pm to 7am, White Night comes to Melbourne. White Night started in France in 2001 and has been to Brussels, Buenos Aires, Tokyo, Toronto, Paris and Rome.

White Night Melbourne

What is White Night?

From dusk to dawn you will be able to enjoy more than 80 free events celebrating music, food, film, art and light, with more than 300 artists across 40 sites.

The event’s program can be collected around town and is also available on the White Night Melbourne website.

These are some of the sites where many visual and performing artists will be:

    • St Paul’s Cathedral
    • Forum Theatre
    • State Library of Victoria
    • Flinders Street Station
    • The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia
    • Degraves Street
    • Flinders Lane.

Trams will run all night, and Melbourne’s CBD will be active with light projections, music and performances till 7am.

Enjoy!

November: busy time in Melbourne’s arts scene

artists, spaces
13 November 2012

November is a busy time of the year in the Melbourne arts scene:

  • graduate exhibitions
  • annual exhibitions
  • open days
  • the commercial galleries leaving the best to last.

Here are a few places to go, places to be seen and exhibitions worth viewing:

Wednesday 14 November 2012
Metro Gallery – E.L.K
Time: 6.30pm to 8.30pm
Where: 1214 High Street, Armadale (view location on Google Maps)
The exhibition will be on until 1 December 2012 (Monday to Friday, 10am to 5.30pm; Saturdays and Sundays, 11am to 5pm)


Friday 16 November 2012
Gertrude Contemporary – Gertrude Studios, 2012
Time: 6pm to 8pm
Where: 200 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy (view location on Google Maps)

Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA) – Art Bar (special evening of art and live music)
Time: 7pm to 11pm
Where: 111 Sturt Street, Southbank (view location on Google Maps)


Saturday 17 November 2012
Utopian Slumps – Nathan Gray
Time: 4pm to 6pm
Where: 33 Guilford Lane, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)
The exhibition will be on until 8 December

Australian Tapestry Workshop – Open Day
Time: 10am to 5pm
Where: 262–266 Park Street, South Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)

 

Monday 19 November 2012
Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) 2012 Graduate Exhibition
Time: 6pm to 8pm
Where: 40 Dodds Street, Southbank (view location on Google Maps)

 

Thursday 22 November 2012
Centre for Contemporary Photography (CCP) – Kodak Salon
Time: 6pm to 8pm
Where: 404 George Street, Fitzroy (view location on Google Maps)

 

Saturday 24 November 2012
Craft Victoria – Open Day
Time: 10am to 5pm
Where: 31 Flinders Lane, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)

Gertrude Contemporary – Open Studios
Time: 1pm to 4pm
Where: 200 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy (view location on Google Maps)

 

Wednesday 28 November 2012
RMIT 2012 Master of Fine Art Exhibition (view flyer, PDF file, 1 page, 341KB)
Time: 5.30pm to 7.30pm
Where: Building 49, Gossard Project Space, Level C, 67 Franklin Street, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)
The exhibition will be on until 5 December (Monday to Friday, 11am to 6pm; Saturday, 12pm to 5pm)

 

Friday 30 November 2012
Australian Print Workshop – Impressions 2012 Fundraiser
Time: 6pm to 8pm
Where: 210 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy (view location on Google Maps)

Melbourne’s festival season celebrates the best of art

artists
17 September 2012

Finally the spring sun is shining and it’s festival season in Melbourne.

 

Melbourne Fringe Festival 2012 – 26 September to 14 October

It all started in 1982, when the Melbourne Fringe Arts Network was formed, mainly consisting of performance artists supporting independent and experimental events.

Thirty years and some 50,000 artists later, the event focuses its 2012 edition on framing the city’s “independent arts culture in all its creative and vital glory.” This year the festival celebrates the past and anticipates the future of arts in Melbourne.

Free booklets can be obtained at various art shops, cafes and cultural outlets. Tickets can be purchased online at the Melbourne Fringe Festival website.

 

Melbourne Festival 2012 – between 11 and 27 October

Melbourne Festival 2012

The Melbourne Festival is 17-day marathon of dance, opera, theatre, film, visual art, music, forums and outdoor events.

The artists and performers are hand chosen by Artistic Director, Brett Sheehy, from Australia and around the world.Tickets are available at the Melbourne Festival website and participating venues.

 

Artery – Did you know about Artery?

Artery is the Australian Council’s online source of news and information about artists, events, projects and trends that shape the Australian arts landscape.

Commercial galleries, warehouse space and hotel installation: that’s art in Melbourne

artists, spaces
15 August 2012

Melbourne Art Fair for 2012 has come and gone, and it was a little quieter than its 2010 edition. However, still very successful with $8 million in sales and 27,000 visitors. For the invited commercial galleries, it is a significant investment, not only in time but also dollars.

An event like this can be overwhelming and cause some visual overload. Personally, I prefer exhibitions that are on at the same time as the fair, are free and available to everyone. Not Fair Art Fair Primal Mutation, launching undiscovered and emerging artists curated by Melissa Amore, Ashley Crawford and Sam Leach, was entertaining and a fabulous use of 1000 Pound Bend’s warehouse back space. I loved the laneway entry and it was exciting to see such a quirky artistic space in the CBD.

One of my favourite exhibitions was at Sofitel Melbourne on Collins (25 Collins Street, Melbourne;  view location on Google Maps). Gosia Wlodarczak was the sixth artist welcomed by the hotel’s annual Artist in Residence program.

She has previously exhibited at the Singapore Biennale, the Drawing Centre in New York and at the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane (view image). Over July, Gosia produced a drawing installation on the hotel’s lobby windows. Guests were able to watch the artist draw and people were invited to observe her performance.

image from Gosia Wlodarczak's Frost Drawing series exhibited at GOMA

I first came across Gosia at a performance at Fehily Contemporary in Collingwood. Gosia’s drawings are spontaneous and flow freely. The work tells a story, it is an observation of the immediate surroundings.

Unfortunately the window installation is not up anymore, but her exhibition is on at Sofi’s Lounge until 8 October 2012.

Should we be upset that a Banksy artwork was destroyed?

artists, Melbourne tours
18 May 2012

Should we be upset that Banksy’s Parachuting Rat was destroyed earlier this week in Prahran?

Many street artists have their worked sprayed over all the time, and there is no public outcry or editorial in the newspapers. Street art has no timeline: it could be up for 5 mins, 5 days or 5 years. To remain untouched, untagged is up to the universe.

It’s fabulous that Bansky shared his work and love in Melbourne. We are fortunate to have enjoyed the work of this British artist for some years now.

The trade person who drilled into that wall in Prahran probably had no idea or understanding that Bansky is famous and expensive. It is a story in itself. It adds to the history of the wall and the history of what was.

Are we sad that the Bansky was destroyed because it’s worth x amount of dollars or are we sad because we lost another Bansky of our walls? Parachuting Rat was the third Banksy destroyed in 2 years – vandals damaged one in Fitzroy in 2011 and council workers painted over another one in Melbourne CBD the year before.

This is an interesting debate and, regardless of your opinion, watch Exit Through The Gift Shop: A Banksy Film. It is a must-see documentary.

The (complex) business side of being an artist

artists
26 April 2012

I have met many artists in need of an “agent” – someone to liase between a gallery and the artist, or an opportunity and the artist. As we know, artists are not that interested in the business side of being an artist.

I can understand this. Business is a full-time job. It is difficult to make the work and then negotiate the sale of the work.

However, how do you be an agent and earn an income? This is a tricky question, as artists generally do not have extra cash to pay for a right hand person. It’s not only about selling works and receiving a commission. It is about listening, offering advice and giving solutions to the artist, understanding situations and being their voice when the artist is too afraid to speak up.

I have talked to many artists who are with great galleries; however, they do not sell any work. They sold previously to being represented and now are in a situation that seems to be similar to a bad relationship, one that is tired and boring.

I do not normally air my thoughts. However, this month has been about support, care, advice to artists and numerous coffees with them.

Let’s stay creative

artists
8 February 2012

Last week I opened Tom Goldner’s first solo exhibition, Photo for Freedom.

It was a pleasure to support a talented, ambitious emerging artist with so much energy and determination.

The show is on until 17 February.

YGAP
12–14 Grey Street, St Kilda (view location on Google Maps)
Wednesday to Sunday, 12pm to 7pm

 

And a friend sent me this today. I love it.

33 ways to stay creative

  1. make lists
  2. carry a notebook everywhere
  3. try free writing
  4. get away from the computer
  5. be otherworldly
  6. quit beating yourself up
  7. take breaks
  8. sign in the shower
  9. drink coffee/tea
  10. know your roots
  11. listen to new music
  12. be open
  13. surround yourself with creative people
  14. get feedback
  15. collaborate
  16. don’t give up
  17. practice, practice, practice
  18. allow yourself to make mistakes
  19. go somewhere new
  20. watch foreign films
  21. count your blessings
  22. get lots of rest
  23. take risks
  24. break the rules
  25. do more of what makes you happy
  26. don’t force it
  27. read a page of the dictionary
  28. create a framework
  29. stop trying to be someone else’s perfect
  30. got an idea? write it down
  31. clean your workspace
  32. have fun
  33. finish something

A complete, resolved and conceptually clear show in Fitzroy

artists, spaces
7 December 2011

Mum’s the Word is the latest exhibition by Melbourne-based artist Catherine Bell at Sutton Project Space in Fitzroy.

As soon as I walked into Sutton Project Space, I felt that I was back in New York City.

You could feel the streets of NYC, the air, the energy, and the hustle and bustle.

Photograph by Catherine Bell

At first, the large pinned black and white photographs by Catherine Bell look to be mums with their children crossing the busy streets. On closer inspection you realise that these women do not belong to these babies and children. They are the hired help; they are the African American nannies that often go unmentioned and unrecognised.

“Bell builds on her longstanding interest in motherhood, surrogacy and deviant maternity, and also presents new ideas relating to the per formative nature of public space.”

It’s the first time in a long time that I’ve walked into a show at Sutton Project Space and felt the exhibition was complete, resolved and conceptually clear. The photographs are not technically outstanding; they don’t need to be as Bell has produced a very tight and balanced show.

Sutton Project Space
230 Young Street, Fitzroy (view location on Google Maps)
Friday and Saturdays only, 1pm to 5pm
Until 17 December

Wow factor art in Melbourne

artists, spaces
10 November 2011

The problem, if it is a problem, with travelling overseas – especially to see a Biennale – is that you are spoilt with an abundance of art.

I have come back to Melbourne in search of the wow factor and so far this is my list:

 

Murray White Room
Sargood Lane (off Exhibition Street, between Flinders Lane and Flinders Street), Melbourne

Transfer Stations by Mira Gojak

Artwork by Mira Gojak

Exhibition runs until 19 November
Tuesday to Friday, 11am to 6pm, and Saturday, 12pm to 4pm

  • Great to walk into Murray White Room and see 2 fabulous installations.
  • The 2 works occupy the space perfectly and I love the use of various materials, lines, dimensions and colours.
  • The works are technical, beautiful and should be in a fabulous foyer somewhere!

 

Lamington Drive
15–25 Keele Street, Collingwood (view location on Google Maps)

Page Girls by Kat Macleod

Artwork by Kat Macleod

Exhibition runs until 19 November
Wednesday to Friday, 11am to 6pm, and Saturday, 12pm to 5pm

  • The cardboard gallery continues with great works by artists/illustrators.
  • The unique states by Kat Macleod are worth buying if there are any left.
  • Otherwise you can buy a digital print or the book!

 

Mailbox 141
Entrance, 141–143 Flinders Lane, Melbourne (view location on Google Maps)

The Wonderful House by Owen Hammond

Artwork by Owen Hammond

Exhibition runs until 2 December
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, and Saturday, 10am to 5pm

  • Incredible houses occupy 14 mailboxes at Mailbox 141.
  • Owen Hammond’s works are crafted to perfection and are fascinating.
  • The exhibition asks us about where do we live, what type of house do we occupy, what goes into our house.