Shepparton Art Museum’s café – Elsewhere at SAM re-opens in March 2023
27 February 2023
Shepparton Art Museum is delighted to announce that new providers will run the café at SAM. Elsewhere at SAM will launch on 22 March. The new management team, consisting of Ricardo Vilsson Mullor, Alaina Tuckett and Jonathan Chan, will create a unique dining experience in the café that reflects the beauty of its surroundings in the museum and Victoria Lake.
With over 20 years of hospitality and management experience between the team as well as extensive local roots, the trio will showcase locally sourced products and ingredients, expressing the flavours and agricultural excellence of our region. Visitors to Elsewhere at SAM will continue to enjoy table service and be able to reserve tables and place orders online. The café will extend their opening hours, opening earlier from 8am and closing at 4pm, creating opportunities for early morning diners to purchase their coffee and breakfast on their morning lake walks.
Alaina Tuckett, Elsewhere at SAM Functions & Events Coordinator, says:
“We are so thrilled to be extending the experience of SAM by connecting and engaging with our community through food and drink offerings. Our team brings a wealth of local networks, knowledge and passion to the venture, strongly focusing on people through our commitment to excellent customer service. We will go to great lengths to promote and support the incredible local producers that the Goulburn Valley has to offer, and our attentive service will ensure that your meal is just as enjoyable as the art you came to see. Whether you visit us for a leisurely dine-in experience or a quick bite to eat, we've got you covered. We’re also excited to support SAM in their delivery of SAM at Sunset through our dining and bar services. This will provide an opportunity for our guests to enjoy a relaxing and memorable evening while taking in the beautiful sunset."
Whilst Elsewhere at SAM transitions into the premises, the café at SAM will be closed for a short period. The café closure coincides with a temporary gallery closure at SAM whilst installation of the museum’s upcoming major temporary exhibition Ash Keating: Elevation and collection exhibition Dance Me to the End of Love takes place. These new exhibitions will open to the public on Saturday 18 March.
Melinda Martin, SAM CEO, says:
“SAM is delighted to be partnering with Elsewhere at SAM to deliver a coffee and dining experience that is reflective of our desire for regional and cultural vibrancy. The team at Elsewhere are passionate about creating excellent food and drink opportunities in the Goulburn Valley, and we know that our visitors will love what will be on offer with the team’s fresh and unique menu.”
An announcement on the menu of Elsewhere at SAM will be released mid-March. All café enquiries can be made via email at hello@elsewhereatsam.com.au and more information can be found on elsewhereatsam.com.au
ENDS
Annual VCE Art exhibition FRESH: GV Top Art and Design is set to open this Saturday 18 February
17 February 2023
Annual VCE Art exhibition FRESH: GV Top Art and Design is set to open this Saturday 18 February in the Shepparton Art Museum’s Community Gallery.
Featuring artworks and design presentations from VCE Art, Studio Art and Visual Communication Design students from the class of 2022 in the Goulburn Valley, FRESH: GV Top Art and Design is Shepparton Art Museum’s (SAM) annual showcase of the talent and creativity of the next generation of artists.
Responding to an open callout, twenty students from across the region submitted their final folios for inclusion in the exhibition. Themes addressed in the works encompass a variety of cultural and social issues, including environmentalism and the continuing impact of the global pandemic. The young artists articulate their ideas and concepts through diverse mediums, including photography, painting, wood burning and recycled materials.
Caroline Esbenshade, SAM Curator – Community, says of the exhibition:
“It’s wonderful to see these burgeoning artists’ works here on the walls at SAM. It’s an exciting step for any artist to have their work exhibited in a museum environment, and even more so if it’s your first experience showing your work publicly.
I hope that any current VCE students who visit the show are inspired to participate next year, and that all visitors take a moment to think about how many artists who are displayed throughout the rest of the building might have gotten their own start participating in a similar program. It’s a reminder to us all that we all start somewhere, and of the importance of having quality art education available in schools.”
FRESH: GV Top Art and Design will open in SAM’s Hugh D.T Williamson Community Gallery on Saturday 18 February. The official exhibition opening celebration will be held on 30 March as part of the museum’s monthly SAM at Sunset event. More details on the event proceedings will be announced soon.
Featured image credit: Gabrielle Doherty, The Calming (detail) 2022. © the artist.
SAM Studios, our art extension workshop series for senior high school students, returns for Term 1 with local Yorta Yorta ceramic artist Jack Anselmi at the helm.
15 February 2023
Shepparton Art Museum’s popular after-school educational workshop series will be back for Term 1, running every Wednesday from 22 February to 29 March. This term, Yorta Yorta artist and Kaiela Arts mainstay Jack Anselmi will lead students through the series of workshops. SAM Studios offers art-focused mentoring and assists senior students in developing and gaining new practical art skills under the instruction of practising artists and experienced SAM staff.
Gabriella Calandro, SAM Engagement Manager, says of the program:
“SAM Studios builds on the school curriculum and creates a space where senior students can access materials and can continue to hone their technique and skill to enhance their abilities, allowing them to grow their folio for final assessment at the end of the year. Jack is passionate about sharing his skills and knowledge with others, and has a wonderful energy and enthusiasm about art. Students will benefit immensely from weekly face-to-face sessions under his mentorship.”
The six-week course will draw from Jack’s extensive knowledge and experience, diving into the art of clay mould-making and hand-building ceramics. Students are encouraged to explore their own artistic style and language, build their skill across artforms, enrich their own portfolios and gain industry insight to inform their future pathways. Previous participants in the SAM Studios workshops have gone on to have their works selected in SAM’s annual GV Top Arts exhibition FRESH, which showcases the talent of young artists in the region and provides their first experience in exhibiting in a significant arts institution, creating exposure and recognition.
The SAM Studios sessions are free, with registrations open to all senior students in the Goulburn Valley region who are currently studying Art, Studio Art or Visual Communication. Bookings can be made via the SAM website: https://sheppartonartmuseum.com.au/event/sam-studios-with-jack-anslemi/
SAM Studios is generously supported by the Victorian Government Department of Education and Training.
About the artist:
Jack Anselmi is a proud Yorta Yorta man from Mooroopna, Victoria. A regular participating artist at Kaiela Arts, Jack enjoys sharing his knowledge with others and learning new skills. He is highly regarded for his striking animal carvings, sculptures and ceramics. Jack has received various commissions including from Melbourne University and Goulburn Valley Grammar School. In 2016, Jack Anselmi worked with fellow artist Cynthia Hardie to create a large ceramic installation called ‘Midden’ for the Indigenous Ceramic Art Award at Shepparton Art Museum. ’Midden’ was one of five shortlisted entries and won the 2016 Award for its innovative use of the medium of ceramic. A recurring theme in his ceramics is the long-neck turtle, which is the Yorta Yorta totem. Jack breathes life into previously inanimate objects whether in wood or ceramic, his animals have an energy about them that is captivating.
SAM’s 2023 exhibition program announced
7 February 2023
The Shepparton Art Museum (SAM) has today announced its 2023 exhibition program. Over the next 12 months, SAM will stage 17 new exhibitions across all five floors.
In 2023, SAM will present exhibitions that connect with locally relevant stories and histories, celebrate Australian artists, and continue to foster national institutional relationships.
SAM’s next major exhibition will focus on the practice of Melbourne-based contemporary artist Ash Keating. Keating, who has exhibited extensively both nationally and internationally, has developed a specialised technique of creating paintings with atmospheric compositions, replicating visuals of natural environmental systems through running, dripping paint. Elevation, his solo exhibition at SAM, will open on March 18 and will feature a series of large-scale works in his signature style that respond to the landscape of the Goulburn Valley region.
Opening simultaneously with Elevation will be SAM’s next collection show. Borrowing its name from a Leonard Cohen song, Dance Me to the End of Love will take visitors on a journey from birth to death and will feature much-loved items from the SAM collection, including Sam Jinks’ 2010 sculptural work Woman & Child.
In July, SAM will present JamFactory Icon 2021 Kunmanara Carroll: Ngaylu Nyanganyi Ngura Winki (I Can See All Those Places), a touring exhibition from JamFactory. Celebrating the career of Luritja/Pintupi/Pitjantjatjara artist Kunmanara Carroll, the solo exhibition will explore his influence and practice, examining the legacy of cultural knowledge he sought to preserve through his paintings and ceramic sculptures.
The 2023 program will close with an exhibition of selected works from the extensive collection of Arndt Art Agency director Matthias Arndt. The exhibition will feature works by both Australian and international artists.
Throughout the year, SAM will continue to present engaging shows in the Children’s Gallery space. For the first time in May, the Children’s Gallery will feature a selection of playful objects from the SAM collection. Later in the year, Melbourne-based visual artist Beci Orpin will bring her signature colourful, geometric style to the space to delight the young and old alike.
SAM’s extensive collection of ceramics will be on show throughout the SAM building in 2023. In February, guest curator and artist Adam John Cullen will present Three Hares; blending the old and the new, Three Hares will feature groupings of ceramics from the collection alongside responsive new works created by Cullen and a number of invited contemporary artists.
SAM will highlight local creative talent in its dedicated Hugh D. T. Williamson Community Gallery. Beginning with a celebration of the 2022 graduating class of arts students, FRESH: GV Top Art & Design 2022 opens in February and features the final folios of over twenty VCE students from across the Goulburn Valley. Following on, the submissions to the three open-call programs SAM Open, SAM EOI and SAM Spotlight will be on display consecutively, shining a light on the creativity of artists of all disciplines and stages in the region.
SAM CEO Melinda Martin says:
“We’re thrilled to present another year’s program of exciting, dynamic exhibitions. In 2023, more hidden treasures from our collection will be on display, and old favourites are poised to make their long-awaited return. The diversity in this year’s offerings with regards to perspective, materiality and method will surely make for a journey of discovery as our visitors explore our galleries over the coming months.”
More information on each exhibition will be released throughout the year. SAM is open 6 days a week (closed Tuesdays) from 10am to 4pm on weekdays and 10am to 5pm on weekends. Entry and exhibitions are free.
Image credit
Penny Byrne: The Four Horseman of the 21st Century Apocalypse, 2009. Shepparton Art Museum Collection, purchased, 2009. © the artist. This work will feature in upcoming major collections exhibiton Dance Me To The End Of Love.
Popular evening event SAM at Sunset returns to the museum on 23 February 2023 in a new, expanded format.
2 February 2023
Shepparton Art Museum (SAM) is thrilled to announce the return of SAM at Sunset in a new, monthly format in 2023. The popular program, which frequently sold out in its limited run in 2022, has evolved in its offerings to become a full museum experience for children and families alike.
Visitors can expect extended-hours access to galleries and the museum shop, curatorial and artist-led talks, creative workshops and ticketed access to the Level 4 bar and terrace, which will feature live music performances and refreshments. In February, SAM at Sunset will double as a celebration of the current temporary exhibition 4th National Indigenous Triennial: Ceremony, a touring show from the National Gallery of Australia, ahead of its closure at the end of the month. K/Gamilaroi artist Penny Evans, who work is featured in Ceremony, will be joining SAM to lead special creative workshops and floor talks in galleries, alongside SAM curators and National Gallery Special Projects Curator Kelli Cole (Warumungu/Luritja peoples).
The evening will also see the unveiling of the newly hung portraits in the current Children’s Gallery exhibition, All Together. Portraits taken of local GV families and groups in January by artists Meredith Turnbull and Ross Coulter will replace the current works on show to reflect the community engagement of the exhibition.
Melinda Martin, SAM CEO, says of the program:
“SAM at Sunset will become a monthly program that creates a space for our community to come together and explore the museum outside of normal museum hours. It’s perfect as a solo activity, a place to catch up with friends for after-work drinks, or as an after-school treat for families to practice creativity together. We are thrilled to be able to offer SAM at Sunset as a regular experience and offer a space where visitors will be able to enjoy regular live music performances. Late night gallery programs have been hugely successful in many arts institutions across the world, including at the National Gallery of Victoria, and we are thrilled to bring our own version of this programming to the Goulburn Valley.”
SAM at Sunset will begin in 2023 on Thursday 23 February from 4pm to 8pm and will be held on the last Thursday of the month. Entry to the museum and access to the workshops and talks are free, subject to program capacity limits; tickets to the Level 4 bar and live music will be available for purchase from Thursday 9 February on the SAM website. Visitors can sign up to the SAM at Sunset mailing list for priority access to the evening program and tickets via the link: https://eepurl.com/ii9HSX
Image: SAM After Sunset, Shepparton Art Museum, 2022. Photo by Cam Matheson