Current exhibitions
Now & Then
17 May to 7 July 2013
Now & Then presents new and recent work by two of Western Australia's most distinctive and accomplished artists: Brian Blanchflower and Paul Caporn alongside earlier work of both artists from the Curtin University Art Collection.
Brian Blanchflower
Brian Blanchflower's works in this exhibition span four decades from the earliest work he completed upon arrival in Australia in 1972 - Eclipse - to works like Concretion 1:11 (mineral violet) completed in his studio in 2012. He is one of Australia's most significant living artists and is represented in all Sate Collections in Australia as well the National Gallery of Australia and numerous collections around the world. Blanchflower's work is a powerful testament to a life devoted to his art practise since his studies in the UK in the late 1950s through to his current studio practise based in Bedfordale, south east of Perth.
Paul Caporn
Paul Caporn's works in this exhibition span 13 years of the artist's practise from the earliest neon works like Cleanse and Ice Box both from 2000, right through to his most recent large scale project if a tree falls in the woods... from 2012. Caporn has won numerous awards in recent years including Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe and has been exhibiting widely since 1995 soon after he graduated from Curtin University's School of Art in 1992.
"I have a long-standing interest in the idea that the relationship we have with the world is an experience that is mediated through language and the things that we develop, make and use to express and manipulate our surroundings."
John Curtin Gallery Award
... or we could fill this space with silence.
17 May to 7 July 2013
Jessica Wilkes
Jessica Wilkes was the recipient of the 2013 John Curtin Gallery Award for her work ... or we could fill this space with silence.
... or we could fill this space with silence is the first phase of an ongoing creative research project where over time, the artist methodically dismantled a one hundred year old piano, meticulously conserving the physical material of the instrument in its entirety - right down to the finest granules of sawdust. From the hundreds of individual components, the artist has created a series of new objects, creating a space of contemplative and non-verbal communication between the artist, the object and viewer. Commenced in early 2011, this project is ongoing with the first phase reaching completion once all components have been used. This will be followed by a final process of giving away all of the objects in acts of exchange.
The John Curtin Gallery Award is a joint initiative between the Gallery and the Curtin Student Guild, and is awarded every year to an outstanding student from the Department of Art in Curtin University's School of Design and Art. The 2013 award entitled Jessica Wilkes to present an exhibition at the John Curtin Gallery of her work that was selected from The Department of Art's 2012 Degree Show.