This exhibition is advertised as being part of the celebration of the 9th National Ceramics Conference, Edge: Identity and Change being hosted in Perth, however it employs more than clay as the medium for expression. Timber, steel, plastic, paint and polyester/cotton are included as contributing artists explore myth, reality, materials and contemporary issues. It is a mixed bag of styles, presentations and statements with no unifying theme which makes it a challenge to view. But each exhibit has merit so the experience is satisfying.
The large sculptures by Judy Brooks (in collaboration with Antonio Battistessa and Daniel Leighton) are fine but not as powerful as the black and white drawing Brooks produces on her own. Despite the use of stone, metal and wood in their construction, the free-form sculptures seem open and expansive. Meanwhile, the real strength of this artist's work is seen in the dark, heavy tones of the brooding drawings, compressed behind glass and held in check by the frame.
More light weight and light hearted is They only come out at night, a small installation composed of electronic cast-offs and imagination. You will interpret the scenario presented according to your experiences with either the old 'Lost in Space' or the new 'X-Files' television series. I admit to identifying with the former, therefore had a delightful reaction.
Elaine Steele presents Daughters of Zeus, a group of white ceramic fish shapes decorated with painted women and suspended in fish-net stockings. Yes, all the levels of symbolism are intended and played upon. The girls hang in front of two large abstract paintings, Nothing happens by accident and Rhythm of ease and effort. They seem to have emerged from these images of primeval chaos only to be caught up in their own cheeky smile induced brand of 'chaos'.
The series of three large canvas squares Terra Nullius by Graham Wood is a most impressive exhibit. The canvases seem to have been stained, dyed, printed, painted, folded, twisted and pressed then pinned to the wall minus support or frame. The result of the process, whatever it involves, is totally fascinating in its residual texture, colour and creases. Seen from a distance they are aerial views of some planet's surface while up close the canvas squares look as beaten and abused as the land.
A word of caution to those who try to identify and malign negative aspects of social behaviour. It can back-fire and the artist ends up condoning what they set out to condemn. Cliff Hughes attempts to vilify domestic violence, a worthy objective, with his Lines of Resistance. Here a collection of clean, white, long sleeves have been neatly removed from men's shirts and precisely pinned to the wall. Along side this display is a quote from Lucy, a victim of domestic violence, explaining how Henry hates 'tram tracks' (double crease) in his ironed shirts. Well Cliff, had the sleeves been ripped from the shirts, wrinkled or shredded I would say it was a celebration of Lucy's resistance. But as each is so painstakingly pressed, with a perfect single crease, I read it as Henry having taught her a lesson yet again. Please, if you want to condemn violence reveal it for what it is, of sign of continuous impotence, don't exhibit its momentary victory.
The ceramic exhibits include two beautiful dishes by Gary Dito, intriguing stoneware pieces in Stacks or Boxed by Diane Jackson, Nadine Taylor's Eve, a fish with hands and feet amuses, and Like Mother, Like Daughter, crouching figures one atop the other by Jayne Irvine attracts attention for their surface treatment and reference to Robyn Lees works.
The exhibition is on the edge of the Edge and,
situated in Midland, on the edge of suburbia but well worth a look.