Brenda May Gallery

▶ THE A TO Z OF CONTEMPORARY ART

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 04:35:00 +0000

Check out the weekend issue of the Sydney Morning Herald to learn everything you ever needed to know about Contemporary Art by Andrew Frost.

▶ LEZLIE TILLEY EXHIBITION INSTALL, PAGES FROM AN A-LESS NOVEL

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 03:05:00 +0000

Exhibition installation of Lezlie Tilley's 2012 solo show, Pages from an a-less novel with the late-afternoon light reflecting off the artwork.

▶ WILL COLES + JAMES GUPPY, OPENING 6 MARCH

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:26:00 +0000

New work by WILL COLES and JAMES GUPPY will be on view starting the 6th of March. Please join us for a drink with the Artists to celebrate the launch of their solo exhibitions on Saturday 10 March from 4-6pm. In conjunction with ART MONTH SYDNEY, the Gallery is also presenting several free events, listed below.

Left: James Guppy, 'The Miscreants Burden' 2012, acrylic on linen, 137 x 92cm
Right: Will Coles, 'Britney' 2012, resin with iron dust, edition of 1, 23 x 33 x 19.5cm

▶ Join us for a glimpse into the surreal world of James Guppy as he demonstrates life drawing, Thursday 8 March 7-9pm
Spaces are limited so please RSVP to the Gallery, info@brendamaygallery.com.au

▶ Art at Night, Drinks with Will Coles, Friday 9 March 6-8pm
RSVP required, info@brendamaygallery.com.au

▶ Will Coles Artist Talk, Saturday 10 March 2-2:30pm
No RSVP required, all welcome

▶ James Guppy Artist Talk, Saturday 10 March 2:30-3pm
No RSVP required, all welcome

▶JAMES GUPPY EXHIBITION AN ART MONTH HIGHLIGHT ON TIME OUT WEBSITE

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 02:01:00 +0000

▶ PRESS: WILL COLES IN ART MARKET REPORT

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 04:56:00 +0000

▶ AUSTRALIA COUNCIL REVIEW SURVEY

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 03:04:00 +0000

Last year hundreds of public submissions were received in response to the National Cultural Policy discussion paper.

As the Australia Council is such a significant channel in which the Australian Government delivers support to the arts and cultural sector, it was not surprising that many submissions discussed the role of the agency.

The Minister for the Arts announced an independent review into the Australia Council which will contribute to the development of the policy. Information on the Review’s Terms of Reference can be found HERE.

The Chairs of the Review, Mr Angus James and Ms Gabrielle Trainor, are very interested in your views about whether the original purpose of the Australia Council remains relevant today and what changes, if any, you would like to see made to the agency’s role and delivery of support to the sector.

Your confidential contribution to the Australia Council Review is valued.

This questionnaire should only take around 8-10 minutes and can only be completed in one sitting. The survey is being undertaken for the Review by TNS Social Research on behalf of the Australian Government’s Office for the Arts.

Take this opportunity to have your say.

▶ LEZLIE TILLEY + MAJOR ARTISTS, MAJOR WORKS, CLOSING 3 MARCH

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:52:00 +0000

A gentle reminder to visit the solo exhibition by LEZLIE TILLEY and the group show MAJOR ARTISTS, MAJOR WORKS before they both close on Saturday 3 March.

The angular and abstracted forms of Lezlie Tilley's current exhibition were created by connecting the 'a's' on a page from a novel. The shapes have then been laser cut in predominantly bright red, coloured acrylic which makes for an amazingly dynamic show. Due to the ongoing nature of the concept of the 'a-less novel', further works can also be commissioned in a wide range of materials including timber, metal and ply.

From Senden Blackwood's sensual, one tonne basalt sculpture to the minute watercolour figures, deftly hidden in Mylyn Nguyen's found chairs, the Major Artists, Major Works exhibition highlights the diversity of talent present in the Gallery's stable of artists.

Our next exhibitions during Art Month, will feature work by represented artists, James Guppy and Will Coles, from Tuesday March 6. If you are already on our notification list, we will send you an email as soon as the work arrives in the Gallery.

▶ NOW ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FOR 'CHIAROSCURO'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:25:00 +0000

Brenda May Gallery is currently accepting proposals from professional practising artists in Australia and New Zealand for the following group exhibition scheduled for 2012.

'Chiaroscuro' - July 2012

Chiaroscuro is the treatment of light and shade for dramatic effect in drawing, painting and printmaking. It is the effect of contrasted light and shadow created by light falling unevenly or from a particular direction, on something or someone. Chiaroscuro is thought to have originated before the Renaissance; this exhibition seeks to show the work of contemporary artists using this traditional practice.
Proposals for this show must be received by Friday 6 April 2012.

Submissions should be posted directly to the Gallery (email submissions and proposals sent by registered post will not be accepted) and should include a CD of recent work and images in support of the proposal, an up to date C/V and a single page outline stating which exhibition you are submitting for and the nature of the work you are proposing.

James Guppy, 'African Wild Dogs' 2010, acrylic on linen, 30.5 x 76cm

▶ TODD FULLER: 'ONE AND ONLY'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

A gift for you on valentines day, from Todd Fuller and Abby Smith.

Feel free to share it with those you love.

▶ JIM CROKE IN 'SCULPTURE 2012'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:49:00 +0000

Jim Croke, 'The Short' 2011, steel, 14 x 60 x 3cm
Jim Croke, 'Freeze' 2011, steel, 14 x 51 x 5cm
Jim Croke, 'The Long' 2011, steel, 14 x 61 x 3cm
Jim Croke, 'Deco' 2011, steel, 61 x 14 x 3cm

"Relief sculpture is very different to sculpture in the round. It must sit on the wall and interact with it not simply be a "piece of jewellery" decorating the wall. It must have a undeniable presence in the space while not actually occupying much of it.

A series of sculptures of a similar theme and scale can help each other tell the story of the work." - Jim Croke, 2011

▶ TODD FULLER IN 'SCULPTURE AT SCENIC WORLD'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:55:00 +0000

Image courtesy of Sculpture at Scenic World

Todd Fuller has a new artwork installed in the inaugural Sculpture at Scenic World which will open on February 16 and run until the 11th of March.

▶ LEZLIE TILLEY + MAJOR ARTISTS, MAJOR WORKS, OPENING 14 FEBRUARY

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:33:00 +0000

A solo exhibition by LEZLIE TILLEY and a group exhibition of our REPRESENTED ARTISTS will be on view starting Tuesday 14 February. Please join the Gallery and Artists for a celebratory drink on Saturday 18 February from 4-6pm.

Lezlie Tilley, 'Preface' 2011, laser cut acrylic

Lezlie Tilley's new exhibition Pages from an A-less Novel, is a strictly methodical body of work that exemplifies the labour-intensive process that is central to her practice. The series began with Tilley cutting out and then tracing each letter 'a' from a novel. She then replicates the dots exactly onto large sheets of paper, connecting them to create abstract geometric shapes that are laser cut in acrylic. This body of work started with Tilley designing and facilitating a mural project with the Newcastle Art School where her students worked freehand to reproduce compositions from this series onto large hoarding panels.

Robert Boynes, 'Night & Day' 2012, acrylic on canvas, timber - triptych, 120 x 244cm

Major Artists, Major Works will feature a significant artwork by each of the fourteen artists represented by the Gallery. Size is relative - for some, major may simply mean bigger than a shoebox, whereas for others it can entail the removal of the Gallery doors!

▶ BENJAMIN STORCH, 'THROUGH THE CENTRE'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 06:16:00 +0000

Benjamin Storch, 'Through the Centre' 2007, hand-hammered copper, 90 x 90 x 30cm

Opening, unfolding space -
One loop traversing another,
Continuous and dynamic, responsive to influence.

This is only the second sculpture exhibited in Australia by the British artist Benjamin Storch. 'Through the Centre' will be on view as part of Sculpture 2012 until Saturday 11 February.

▶ PRESS: 'SCULPTURE 2012' IN SMH

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 01:30:00 +0000

▶ LEZLIE TILLEY: NEVER A DAY WITHOUT A LINE

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:00:00 +0000

To view the new work of Lezlie Tilley is to enter into a Euclidian world, where we become conscious of an order that not only respects a geometry with which we think we are familiar, but at another level we are dealing with the aftermath of a process that is almost cabalistic in nature. Tilley has begun with a simple and playful idea where she deconstructs a novel by eliminating for example all the letter “a”s from a page by punching a set of cards to represent these vacancies, thus setting up a randomness that fights to be controlled – a choice has been made without the consequences having been previously known.

This serendipitous event becomes for Tilley synonymous with her ever present attention to the demands of drawing and it is here that she speaks of “a world of line that describes pathways, meeting places and a documenting of time.” Her clarity of thinking is ever present, the aesthetic is “tight” while the materiality of the works describes a space that becomes architectural in its command of our visual field. Her use of media forces one to acknowledge its linear crispness and clarity, thus reinforcing a way of thinking about drawing. Here no time is wasted on flamboyance or the unnecessary gestural mark.

Lezlie Tilley, 'Preface' 2011

As in previous works Tilley recognises the great debt that must be paid to the work of countless unknown craftswomen who made lace, patchwork and weavings. Tilley has always drawn inspiration from these predecessors. It is therefore not unprecedented to learn that she has also looked at some of the earliest forms of punchcard weaving where industrial weaving was simplified when the Jacquard loom was invented. These looms are controlled by a series of punched cards with each card representing a corresponding row in the design. There is also a link to our earliest forms of computer programming and Tilley recounts some of her early employment experiences using punched tape, then used for type setting.

Tilley’s works are generative, beginning as a series of punched templates and resulting in a matrix which is notable for being both complex and simple at the one viewing. A matrix affords one the ability to have many views at once and it is therefore no accident that these works fuse both figure and ground providing the viewer with a complex range of responses to lines, shapes and spaces that seem to shift, describing a slightly disorienting, ephemeral space. Here one experiences a unity of vision, or in the words of Eckhart Tolle, the Canadian writer, “a great silent space (that ) holds all of nature in its embrace. It also holds you.”1

Patricia Wilson-Adams/ Jan 2012
Conjoint Senior Lecturer
The University of Newcastle

1. Eckhart Tolle Stillness Speaks: meditative thoughts New World Library, Novato Ca and Namaste Publishing Vancouver, 2003

▶ EMILY MCINTOSH + MARCUS DILLON, 'VEDUTA (CITYSCAPE)'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

As artists who work with glass we are very aware of how our art practices can have adverse effects on the environment. Rethinking the ways we make our work can substantially minimise its impact on the environment and is integral to our work practice. We recycle materials whenever possible and are mindful of the use of consumables and their effects on the environment. This work titled 'Veduta (cityscape)' embodies these practices and is the first installation that we have not produced any of the glass components via traditional methods ourselves; instead we are have re-claimed used clear glass jars and bottles from neighbours and friends.

Emily McIntosh + Marcus Dillon, 'Veduta (cityscape)' 2012, reclaimed and cold worked glass jars + bottles, 27 x 140 x 30cm (variable)

Glass requires high temperatures to facilitate its creation from sand and mineral elements, until it finally has the ability to be worked into its final form. It can take hundreds of years for glass to break down naturally but it can be entirely recycled using substantially less energy than is required during its original process of creation.

'Veduta (cityscape)' is a glass installation made up of around 200 re-claimed glass jars and bottles. These vessels will be cut, carved and repolished to remove the utilitarian history while still permitting us a hand in shaping each form in a way that is much kinder to the environment than producing each of from scratch. The installation once exhibited is able to be entirely recycled again.

'Veduta (cityscape)' illuminated by late afternoon sunlight

The glowing city scape of amassed glass jars is representative of any built up urban environment. City scapes are an intricate network of infrastructure, buildings, organizations and communities that reside within them. Being part of any environment requires responsible, thoughtful and careful practices to ensure environmental stability and sustainability.

-Emily McIntosh + Marcus Dillon, 2011

'Veduta (cityscape)' will be on view at the Gallery as part of Sculpture 2012 until Saturday February 11th.

▶ SCULPTURE 2012, CLOSING 11 FEBRUARY

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 03:43:00 +0000

We are delighted to report that we've had an overwhelming response to our first exhibition of the year, Sculpture 2012. So if you haven't managed to drop by, this is a friendly reminder that there is only a week left as the show closes at 6pm on Saturday February 11. Don't miss the big green polar bear by Jon Cox or the engaging suspended mirrors by Vanessa Stanley, both big hits with the littlest gallery goers.

Our next exhibitions include a solo exhibition by Lezlie Tilley and a group show featuring major work from our Represented Artists - both shows will be on view from Tuesday February 14.

▶ ART MONTH 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:03:00 +0000

Brenda May Gallery will be participating in Art Month Sydney 2012 with exhibitions by Will Coles and James Guppy. Several free events will be held in conjunction with the opening of the shows.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Art Month events at the Gallery. Please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions.

▶ JAMES GUPPY, Anima Rising, 6 to 24 March 2012

Join us for a glimpse into the surreal world of James Guppy as he demonstrates life drawing during Art Month, Thursday 8 March 7-9pm
Spaces are limited so please RSVP to the Gallery, info@brendamaygallery.com.au

James Guppy Artist Talk, Saturday 10 March 2:30-3pm
No RSVP required

Left: James Guppy, 'The Miscreants Burden' 2012, acrylic on linen, 137 x 92cm
Right: Will Coles, 'Britney' 2012, resin with iron dust, edition of 1, 23 x 33 x 19.5cm

▶ WILL COLES, Nihilist archaeology, 6 to 24 March 2012

Art at Night, Drinks with Will Coles, Friday 9 March 6-8pm
RSVP required, info@brendamaygallery.com.au

Will Coles Artist Talk, Saturday 10 March 2-2:30pm
No RSVP required

▶ MONA

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:36:00 +0000

Yesterday Brenda May Gallery had the great pleasure of travelling down to Hobart to visit the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA). Not only did we enjoy incredible food, art, coffee, architecture and landscape, all the people we met were amazingly warm and helpful.

David Walsh's specific vision for MONA was carefully articulated throughout the complex down to the smallest detail. The subterranean museum was designed by the Melbourne architect Nonda Katsalidis who features the sandstone walls of the cliff around which it was built. Located on a small peninsula on the Derwwent River, the complex offers visitors beautiful vistas from cafes, libraries and the Pavilions.

Dishes savoured at The Source

The 'BIT.FALL' installation by Julius Pop was favourite among the Brenda May Gallery gals. The water words were mesmerising and the repetitive sounds hypnotic.

We began our visit at the Wim Delvoye exhibition which is on view until the 10th of April. Tattoo Tim is seen here sitting patiently on a plinth while a room of visitors snapped photos of his back.

▶ 'HELLO DOLLIES' AT PENRITH REGIONAL GALLERY

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 02:49:00 +0000

Will Coles, 'Context', 2011, resin, 9 x 32 x 27cm

Represented artist Will Coles and exhibited artists Janet Parker-Smith and Fiona Fenech will all be featured in the upcoming show Hello Dollies at Penrith Regional Gallery. The show includes "artwork from the 1940s until today that scrutinizes the human condition via the symbolic and psychological resonance of 'the doll' - desire, hope, fear; fun, satire and critique." Hello Dollies, curated by Shirley Daborn, will be on view starting the 11th of February until the 22nd of April.

Left: Janet Parker-Smith, 'Read Into It What You Will No.2' 2011,

deconstructed book, digital prints, wire, deconstructed doll, perspex box, 37.5 x 32 x 17cm
Right: Janet Parker-Smith, 'Read Into It What You Will' 2011,

deconstructed book, digital prints, wire, deconstructed doll, perspex box, 36 x 36 x 17cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: OLIVER TANNER SCULPTURES

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 03:18:00 +0000

Left: Oliver Tanner, 'Copper Drip Bust' 2011, copper + silver solder on stone base, 70 x 30 x 30cm
Right: Oliver Tanner, 'Copper Wire Bust' 2011, copper + silver solder on stone base, 60 x 60 x 30cm

Using the body as a vehicle, Oliver Tanner’s work explores the balance between presence and absence, the fragment and the whole, emphasising structures of negative and positive space.

Tanner will be exhibiting as part of Introducing III..., on view from the 17th of April until the 5th of May.

▶ PETER TILLEY, 'NAVIGATING THE PAST'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 06:25:00 +0000

Peter Tilley, 'Navigating the Past' 2012, patinated cast bronze, Corten steel, 135 x 44 x 44cm

In life as in nature, when all the prevailing conditions are just right we are rewarded with ‘a calm sea’.

‘Navigating the Past’ is a privately constructed environment that is a juxtaposition of unlikely objects, collectively a symbolic arrangement that defies the ordinary. The odyssey of the boat is a metaphor relating to life’s journey, a voyage through time which takes on symbolic values and multiple layers of meaning.

The work also negotiates the intersection of Egyptian funerary barques and contemporary history, transforming and combining those influences into a contemporary entity.

Peter Tilley, 2011

'Navigating the Past' is on view part of Sculpture 2012 until Saturday 11 February.

▶ MELINDA LE GUAY + HELEN MUELLER IN 'PAPER NOW' AT INCINERATOR ART SPACE

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:42:00 +0000

Next week the curated group exhibition Paper Now will open at Incinerator Art Space in Willoughby. Our represented artist Melinda Le Guay and exhibited artist Helen Mueller both have work included in the show. From the exhibition website:

"Paper Now comprises thirty works by eleven Australian artists who share a common approach to their current practice through the use of paper as the primary medium. Paper is part of our everyday experience - we use it at home, at work, in our leisure time. It is functional, ephemeral and transient. Rarely does it extend into the realm of the aesthetic. In this exhibition artists Sally Aplin, Bronwyn Berman, Marguerite Derricourt, Melinda Le Guay, Brigiat Maltese, Nerine Martini, Helen Mueller, Maryann Mussared, Jenny Pollak, Liz Shreeve and TianLi Zu employ concepts and techniques from a range of artistic and cultural traditions to transform our experience of paper. They cut, fold, stitch, etch, stamp, trace, draw and paint on and with paper highlighting the sensuality and fragility of this extraordinarily versatile substance."

Paper Now runs from the 28th of January until the 4th of March.

▶ SENDEN BLACKWOOD, 'AIO'

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:13:00 +0000

Senden Blackwood, 'aio' 2012, carved limestone, Corten steel, 101 x 63 x 54cm

The piece feels like a return to "the object", despite it's size. While making it I really enjoyed it sitting in all the different positions and felt strongly that I didn't want to bolt it into one position. I want the purchaser to be able to change it if they wish, to keep it fresh.

Originally I had designed it to sit on one of the arcs. I liked the rounded "pebble" feeling to the convex side, contrasting with the cave/space of the interior. Obviously this presents quite a different feeling to the orientation it's in now. It was great to discover that it worked both ways.

The names I choose for sculptures are usually quite personal, this one possibly the most so. Ai is the Japanese word for love. To me, ‘aio’ definitely has a feeling of connection and of a loving relationship; two arcs opposite yet connected. The texture makes me think of warm summer holiday memories, of safety, privilege and maternal love. Like watching a sunny field of wheat through sleepy eyes on route to a summer holiday. My partner and I both have nicknames that end in o and we've had these names since we were kids. Like I said, personal.

Io is a moon orbiting jupiter. It is apparently the only planetary body in our solar system, other than earth, that has evidence of tectonic plate movement. This spoke to me in relation to the form of ‘aio’, especially when it is positioned concave side up. Sharp rising plates pushed high by huge forces.

- Senden Blackwood, 2012

'aio' is currently on view at the Gallery as part of Sculpture 2012.

▶ PRESS: WILL COLES IN INNER WEST COURIER

noreply@blogger.com (Brenda May Gallery) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 04:03:00 +0000

Will Coles was featured in the 'Who's News in 2012?' feature of the Inner West Courier.

His next solo exhibition, Nihilist archaeology, will be on view starting the 6th of March.