Recycled Expressions 3 Opening Soon
8 November 2006
Opening at the Shepparton Art Gallery on 24 November is Recycled Expressions 3, a group exhibition by artists from the GV Centre’s Disability Services.
The exhibition will be officially launched by Jeanette Powell MP and Tess Noonan Egan.
Under the creative direction of Art Studio Coordinator Julia Thomas, participants have produced a range of fantastic artworks including drawings, paintings, mosaics, sculptures, pottery, and 3D wall hangings.
Gallery Director Leanne Willis says the exhibition title was chosen because all the art works have been created utilising all or part recycled materials.
“The artists have worked consistently, exhibiting in the foyer of the Eastbank Centre for the past two years in preparedness for this exhibition,” says Ms Willis.
“This exhibition is a credit to the GV Centre’s Art Studio whose commitment fosters talented artists to produce works of art worthy for sale and exhibition in any gallery.”
The GV Centre’s Disability Services art program is a hive of activity, self expression and achievement. Established in 1954 the GV Centre offers children and adult services giving participants the option to participate in a variety of programs, including supported employment along with a number of day programs. The Centre’s art program is one such day program that has been providing people with a disability the option to pursue creative expression through art and craft for over 10 years. The art program plays an important role in achieving the Centre’s mission and provides clients with an opportunity to express themselves, build self esteem and gain a sense of pride in their work.
The exhibition is being held in conjunction with International Day of People with a disABILITY. The day is a celebration of ability, and the exhibition is a major event for the artists, as it provides them the opportunity to display their works within the local community via the same means as any other emerging or recognised professional artist.
Two of the artists whose work will be exhibited were selected from throughout Victoria to participate in Connected 06 coordinated by State Trustees and Arts Project Australia. Connected 06 was an exhibition of artworks at Federation Square, Melbourne that celebrated the work of artists with a disability.
The GV Centre’s art program has come a long way and plays a major part in increasing the quality of life of people with a disability and providing them with a future of opportunities. To obtain more information on this program please contact Kate Smith, Marketing Coordinator on (03) 5831 4965.
The exhibition opens at the Shepparton Art Gallery on Friday 24 November at 6.00pm. Please RSVP by 22 November to (03) 5832 9861.
The exhibition will continue until 17 December 2006.
Coathangers – Traditional Crafts in Contemporary Light
8 November 2006
Opening at the Shepparton Art Gallery on Wednesday 15 November is Coathangers, an exhibition presented by the Contemporary Sculptors Association Inc. and the Goulburn Valley West Country Women’s Association.
Guest speaker Dr Kevin Murray, Director of Craft Victoria, will officially open the exhibition at 4.00pm.
A series of workshops held over the past 12 months has created a link between regional and city-based communities through the medium of textile craft. These fertile exchanges have led to a much-needed acknowledgement of traditional craft in the world of contemporary art.
The many traditionally worked pieces in this exhibition, some echoing over five generations of craft practice, evoke a strong sense of the honing of skills over time. Complementing this exquisitely perfected work are thoughtful and provocative contemporary sculptures that address the line imposed between art and craft.
This exhibition is the result of a long term community project where members of the Country Women’s Association have passed on their craft skills to urban contemporary sculptors, as an addition to their regular work within the Goulburn Valley. This region is heavily affected by the ongoing drought, and these workshops have provided a critical connection between those in the city and those living under severe conditions. Socially and creatively, the workshops have been a source of relief and refreshment to an area under extreme duress.
With the generous support of Arts Victoria, the Sidney Myer Fund and the City of Yarra, the CWA/CSA workshops have showcased beading, crazy patchwork, crochet, embroidery, woollen sculptures, felting, stumpwork, blackwork, quilling, knitting, basket making, goldwork and canvas work among other specialised textile crafts.
This exhibition questions the social and artistic exclusivity that has allowed the omission of these works from public galleries, forcing them to be hidden away at home and often destined for the opportunity shop. Coathangers attempts to draw attention to women’s craft, and to encourage women to continue passing on traditional skills to ensure the diversity and vibrancy of this work continues. This project gives long overdue accolades for CWA group crafts that have never been exhibited at a major public gallery since the CWA’s inception in 1928.
This exhibition will continue until 17 December 2006.
For further details, images or interviews please contact the project coordinator
Elaine Miles on elaine.miles@artdes.monash.edu.au, 0438 090 523 or (03) 9822 5658.