A couple of weeks ago I was in a group exhibition curated by Shellaine Godbold at LETA Gallery + Project Space. It turns out this was the last show at LETA, which is a real shame because it was a lovely little space, and had a flexibility and responsiveness that is rare amongst gallery spaces. I'm glad I had the opportunity to be part of a show there. Shellaine, who is well known for her own art practice, Here and There ARI, and being one of the most well-dressed, hilarious and photogenic people in the Canberra art scene, is also a bloody good Curator. Her premise for the exhibition was: "'Past Perfect' is a show about perfect moments, spaces and golden ages and our need to try to capture them - pin them down, secure them and make them ours forever." The works in the exhibition sat together beautifully, bringing together a range of media and ideas, including references to traditional cultures and history, childhood, the process of art making itself, and the experience of nature and the sublime. The artists in the exhibition were (with links to their websites where I could find them):
Eliya Nikki Cohen
Daniel Edwards
Annika Harding
Harriet Lee Robinson
Cat Mueller
Andy Mullens
Katy Mutton
Clare Thackway and Gregory Hodge
There are a few install photos below, but they don't show the work of a few of the artists. I'll post more if I can get my hands on some more photos!
My series in the exhibition, In a Clear Light, below, features people dear to me in awe-inspiring places we've been to together. In the tradition of Romanticism, they are depicted as 'Ruckenfigur' (from behind), gazing out at the landscape, the experience both shared and personal, on the edge of understanding and so difficult to convey to even our closest companions. My interest in the sublime is ever expanding, in no small part because that experience is so hard to pin down and represent, almost bordering on futile; but it's something that seems to resonate with many people- a powerful, human experience. So any art that explores the sublime, in a way, must be completed by the viewer, who draws on their own experience of the sublime.
Install shot of In a Clear Light, with work by Daniel Edwards on the right
Install photo with work by Cat Mueller (foreground), Harriet Lee Robinson (table), (left to right on walls) me, Daniel Edwards and Gregory Hodge & Clare Thackway
(left to right) Works by Cat Mueller, Gregory Hodge & Clare Thackway and Eliya Nikki Cohen
Works by Cat Mueller (left and foreground) and Andy Mullens