the 6th APT

I visited the 6th Asia Pacific Triennial at the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane yesterday, and was quite blown away by the extraordinary standard of works exhibited this time round. Artworks range from huge skulls painted on silk drapes severasl meters high to piles of discarded cooking utensils - plus several video and multi media entries and even a solid brass motorcycle.

This exhibition is an absolute must visit for everyone interested in the arts. It is the only major international project that focusses on the contemporary arts of Asia, the Pacific and Australia.

With over 100 artists represented from countries such as China, N and S Korea, Turkey, India, Iran, Tibet, Fiji and so on, this exhibition is a wonderful opportunity for us to look into the minds of these dymanic artists.

Entry to the exhibition is free and it runs until April - but dont leave it til the end because I am sure - like me - you'll want to re-visit it once you've had a taste ...

Line of Control - Subodh Gupta - India
an enormous mushroom cloud structure made from brass domestic utensils

PixCell-Elk#2 - Kohei Nawa - Japan

an elk covered with crystal glass beads

Ellen Appleby

Gift boxed vases and dipping plates from Ellen Appleby

Exquisite gift boxed porcelain works by Sunshine Coast clayworker Ellen Appleby have just come into the gallery. Ellen fired this work on Christmas eve !!! so they are still warm ...

Ellen moved to Noosa from Brisbane in 2006, where she worked as an artist and environmental educator and community artist. She has just completed her second year of Visual Arts (ceramics) at the Sunshine Coast TAFE. She is probably best "recently" known for her ceramic works at the Floating Land event at Noosa last June.

Seasons Greetigs

Peter Wooward - Garden Series

wishing you all the merriest of merry CHRISTMASSES

and a NEW YEAR full of excitement and good challenges.

cheers - Ken

Caroline Lilliman Pottery

Just in to Maleny Artworks Gallery today are four equisite hand-built and hand-decorated porcelain pots crafted by master Maleny ceramicist Caroline Lilliman.
Caroline's arts practice has covered three decades and she ranks up there amongst Australia's most original potters, and these four vessels are a fine example of work from a truly gifted artist and arts technician.


Flying Dream - hand-built porcelain

Platypus Vessel - hand-built porcelain

Tall pit-fired + hand-carved vessel

Squat pit-fired + hand-carved vessel

Mapping the Range

Discover the Difference - Mieke van Sambeeck

Opening last week and continuing through into the New Year at Maleny Artworks Gallery is an exciting exhibition of artworks by members of the Collaboration of Maleny Artists - COMA.
Artists were invited to select a grid from a topographical map of the Blackall Ranges - from Maleny to Montville - then create an artwork relevant to, or inspired by, that part of the Range.
60 artists responded with works ranging from cows to waterfalls.

Morning at Baroon Pocket Dam - Toni Black

Shadows more Real - Noela Mills

A Month of Mountain Mornings - Fiona Dempster

Below Bald Knob - Jo Murray

Mini Deep Red - Barry Smith

Janna's Cows

Janna - in white t-shirt with sponsores and supporters
Unveiled this week at the entrance to the Maleny township are five wonderful steel cows by Curramore artist Janna Pameijer. The sculptures acknowledge the dairy industry bought to the Ranges by our pioneers last century and still a major contributor to our local economy, and they have been erected on the site of the entrance to the old Boxsell's cattle saleyards -that were sold off to make way to an ugle retail development.

Michael Pugh's Tea Service

Just in to Maleny Artworks is a new shipment of exquisite blue and white tableware from the studio of Michael Pugh, including this superb teapot and mugs .

After the Burn

Patricia Cale - "After the Burn"

Opening last night - and running through to 23 December - Main Street Gallery in Montville is hosting an exciting exhibition of new paintings by Patricia Cale. The exhibition is titled ‘After the burn’ .
Patricia's ability to make powerful marks and manipulate different media, in contemporary paintings and mixed media artworks, is clearly demonstrated in this new work.
With parallels drawn from the powerful new energy released from the initially destructive process of fire, Patricia has drawn much of her colour research from recent fires at Tuchekoi.
She has observed the amazing recovery of the trees, with new green leaves defiantly growing on ash coloured branches, covered with burnt leaves.
The works in this show are a dynamic expression of the power of nature and its regenerative life forces.

Patricia Cale talks about her work ...

Marks must be beautiful, or the space between them cannot be beautiful.
My work is my communication. I believe all art is about communication - it should touch a common chord and feed the soul.
It's the 'moment' that I seek, that moment where my ego disappears and the piece becomes something else.
I work very hard; the simplest result sometimes takes days, even weeks. At other times the work flows seamlessly, and that’s a privilege.
Every experience in my life I count as the colour I bring to my palette. I live my work, and cannot imagine waking up in the morning and not going to the easel. I am blessed.
I like to think that this explains my mark-making. My work is about the life force - in everything. That force which sings the mysteries. My marks need to be as fine as possible because what I want to create is that suspension of life. I don't think about death, I'm too caught up in life.
My new paintings draw upon the cathartic experience and are expressed here as metaphor through the natural regeneration of our Australian landscape - after the burn.


Main Street Gallery is located at 167 Main Street Montville - beneath the Poets Corner cafe.
To view the exhibition online go to < http://www.mainstreetgallery.com.au/ > or for further information about the artist, call Mark on 07 5478 5050.

Wabi Sabi Woman

Maleny artist Noela Mills now has her unique scarves on sale at Maleny Artworks Gallery.

Made from antique kimono silks, in the tradition of 'wabi sabi' - the Zen Buddhist philosophy of finding beauty in imperfection and in the everyday - the scarves are an absolute delight and an essential 'artistic fashion accessory' for the discerning dresser !!!

Great Moments in Art

In the Weekend Australian 21/22 Nov 09

Wild Life and Rust at Maleny Artworks

Ginna with The Hunters and the Hunted
Opening this week and running through to 09 December at Maleny Artworks Gallery are two powerful exhibitions by members of COMA ...

Firstly ... A Wild Heart - featuring wild life paintings by Wondai (ex-Maleny) artist Gina Davey and the other is ... Unearthed - a series of contemporary clay vessels and mixed media sculptures by Dulong artist Kim Schoenberger.

Kim's Unearthed clayworks

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Four Artists: four worlds

Opening last weekend in Maleny is a stunning four part exhibition of artworks from four of our leading artists. Patricia Cale, Wendy Nugent, Barry Smith and Fiona Dempster have all worked separately on this exhibition, titled Four Artists: four worlds. It is an intimate look at the world around us reflecting on its many variances. The artists invite us to stop and contemplate the power of all that influences our lives.
Patricia’s bold rural images draw us into a sometimes chaotic yet sometimes serene landscape of our dreams, our waking and our desires. Wendy’s paintings are bright and vibrant reflecting the many phases of the moon over the deep waters of the Baroon Pocket Dam. Barry takes us on a journey into his sculptured world with recycled timber, metal and other found objects, while Fiona creates a stillness so perfect and simple with her wonderful calligraphic works. All four artists have viewed and captured their particular worlds in exciting and creative artworks.
The exhibition runs for three weeks at the Maleny Artworks Gallery – upstairs 50 Maple Street.

Wendy Nugent - The Shape of Water - acrylics on canvas - framed $800.

Fiona Dempster - Landscape 3 - drypoint - framed/glass - $120.

Barry Smith - Meditation Bowls - beaten brass - $35. each

Patricia Cale - Deepwater - mixed media - framed/glass - $1500.

Maleny Youth Art Awards

Last weekend artworks produced by students from across the Range were on show at the Maleny High School Activities Centre. The occasion was the 15th Maleny Apex Young Artists Award.

Maleny High School senior student Freda Davies - winner of the senior painting prize - with her painting Desert Poems.

Organisers this year were delighted with a record number of entries by budding young artists from the hinterland districts, confirming that this annual event is now firmly established as a most important cultural event.
Maleny Apex must again be thanked and congratulated for sponsoring this award and for supplying the man-power needed setting up the exhibition screens.
In opening the show Apex Vice President Steve Skull congratulated the students for such a high standard of work and thanked the Maleny community for supporting Apex fund raising efforts that made possible the sponsorship of events such as the Art Awards.
This year the art teachers and senior students from Maleny High worked together in hanging the artworks and members of COMA manned the information desk over the two day exhibition.
Judges were Patricia Cale, Mieke van Sambeeck and Penny Riddoch, and artworks were judged on the basis of creativity, aesthetic appeal and originality. Thirty five students received prizes for individual artworks and prizes went to four school groups for their installation pieces. The people’s choice prize was awarded to Estelle Molley from Maleny High for her painting Isis.Congratulations to all the students who took part in this exciting exhibition. A collection of artworks from the show are now on exhibition at A Peace of Green Gallery in Maple Street

Maleny.

Ken chatting with overseas visitors at the YAA Exhibition - now therein lies a story !!!

Happy Vessels

Seen enjoying the vessels at the opening last Saturday ...

Fiona, Barry, Carolyn, Mieke, Ken and Mark ... pic by Gemma.

Vessels at maleny Artworks ...

... well the judging has taken place during the week and at the function on Saturday afternoon we announced the winner of the vessel competition ... the Judge - UK ceramicist Jim Robison - certainly had a tough task in selecting the winner and in fact asked that I include six highly commended awards ... and they are ....

Megan Puls ( Gold Coast - Qld ) - Strata Bottles

Jackie Gasson ( Eudlo - Qld ) - set of 3 Soda Fired Vessesls

Richard Rofe ( Bruny Is - Tasmania ) - Set of 3 Tectonic Vessels

Michael Pugh ( Buderim Qld ) - Ocean Amphora

Norman Dobson ( Maleny - Qld ) - Ancient Vessel

Sandra Rofe ( Bruny Island - Tasmania ) - The Vessels of Life

and the Best in Show Award and the $500. prize went to ...

Ian Reid ( Dulong - Qld ) - Lidded Vessel 2

Ian with award judge Jim Robison ...

Thank you to all the ceramicists who entered the competition and congratulations to Ian and the Highly Commended artists ... and a huge thank you to Jim Robison for taking time out on his busy Australian trip to judge the entries ..
The show runs now until the 28th October ...