Local artists highlighted in SAM Open 2024
19 August 2024
SAM Open 2024, Shepparton Art Museum’s (SAM) annual open-call group exhibition, returned to the museum’s Hugh D.T Williamson Community Gallery on Saturday 17 August. The callout for entries to the exhibition resulted in 70 submissions from artists and creatives living or working in the Goulburn Valley and Hume regions. All 70 entries are displayed in the exhibition, with each work reflecting the artists’ unique responses to the theme of ‘remnants, memories, and objects’.
SAM Open celebrates and showcases the creativity of the artistic community across the Goulburn Valley and the Hume Regions. The works on display span an array of styles and approaches, including photography, poetry, ceramics, and sculpture.
SAM Open provides an opportunity to bring together local practitioners to share their creativity with audiences and presents their work in dialogue with exhibitions by nationally recognised Australian artists. The featured works in SAM Open 2024: Remnants, memories, and objects explore the theme through treasured objects, recollections of travel, moments with loved ones, and reflections on personal growth. The range of perspectives represented creates opportunities for viewers to reflect on their own stories and the objects that make up their lives.
Caroline Esbenshade, SAM Curator – Community, says of the exhibition:
“Each year I have been thrilled and surprised by the breadth of talent in our community when the submissions to SAM Open roll in, and this year is no exception. The responses to the theme of ‘Remnants, memories, and objects’ are richly diverse, but as always, there is something for everyone. This show is beautiful snapshot of the creativity of our community.”
SAM Open 2024: Remnants, Memories, and Objects in now showing at Shepparton Art Museum until 17 November 2024.
SAM Open 2024 exhibiting artists:
Meredith Arnold, Maureen Ball, Fasiha Batool, Greg Beckenham, Andrew Bond, William Boyer, Bec Bromley Humphries, David Doc Brown, Val Callister, Margaret Carey, Alan Cartlidge, Rhonda Chrisanthou, Valerie Clements, Ann Cremean, Ross Dainton, Kim D’Arma, Letizia D’Augello, Beverley Dowd, Michael Flatt, Jeanette Fry, Anna Generalova, Barbara Gray, Kerry Handwerk, Dianne Hanna, Carolena Helderman, Samantha J Heriz, Raymond Hill, Amanda Hocking, Wendy Hogben, honeypot pottery, Belinda Hook, Kirsten Ives, Wendy Jagger, Donna Kaye, Fiona Kennan, David Kerr, Lois Krake, Janice Laidlaw, Marion Langford, Jodi Lewis, John Martin Lewis, Miki Mackenzie, Peta Manning, marikartoons (Linda Marikar), Elizabeth Masters, Ron Miliado, Joan Mullarvey, Diane Nally, Steven Nash, Merinda Page, lyn patone, Kaye Poulton, Maria Radanov, Jill Riordan, FAN ROARHEART, Judith Roberts, Lucia Rossi, Angie Russi, Kate Ryan, Judy Simm, Lucy Smyth, Narelle Snelling, Rebecca S. Trevaskis, Laurie Tyndall, Megan Walker, Anna White, Janine Wilson, Jen Wilson, Beverley Williams, Vicki Woodhouse.
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Shepparton Art Museum announces award winners of SAM Fresh 2024
16 August 2024
Shepparton Art Museum announces award winners of SAM Fresh 2024
Shepparton Art Museum is pleased to announce artists Gabriella Vittorio and Kat Parker as the respective winners of the SAM Fresh 2024 La Trobe University Award and People’s Choice Award. The winners of the awards were announced to an excited crowd of over 80 attendees at the museum on Saturday 3 August during the official exhibition celebration, which included remarks from SAM Acting Artistic Director Danny Lacy and SAM Curator – Community Caroline Esbenshade.
Both artists’ winning entries have been on display in the SAM Community Gallery as part of the SAM Fresh 2024 exhibition, an annual, open-call group exhibition for young creatives aged 16-25 living, working, or studying in the Goulburn Valley and Hume regions.
Working in a surrealist style, Gabriella Vittorio’s winning entry, titled Lunchtime, is a digital drawing exploring her Italian heritage and the challenges of growing up as a culturally diverse person in Australia. Vittorio’s work depicts the common experience shared by many multicultural school students of self-consciousness around packed lunches from home. Vittorio receives a cash prize of $1,500 as the recipient of the La Trobe University Award.
An accomplished printmaker and artist, Kat Parker’s winning entry, titled Discarded III, features a life-sized 3D linocut model of a Robust White-Eye, an extinct species formerly found on Lord Howe Island. The artwork appears like a bird in flight, suspended on a barely-visible wire from the ceiling of the gallery. Parker receives a cash prize of $500 as the recipient of the People’s Choice Award, which was open for voting by visitors since the opening of the exhibition in May.
Caroline Esbenshade, SAM Curator – Community, says of the award winners:
“Both winning works really connected with audiences and represent a high level of skill within their practices. Parker’s Robust White-eye is such a unique approach to printmaking. Made of many artworks within an artwork, it is composed of multiple linocut prints that she has layered together to create a three-dimensional form. The resulting sculpture looks like it has taken flight in our galleries and at any moment will chirp!
Vittorio’s work has truly been a conversation piece. I have heard people off different generations and backgrounds sharing with each other what lunches they took to school, what was considered to be a ‘cool lunch,’ what was their least favourite thing to have for lunch and more. It’s been a beautiful point of connection between audiences and staff.”
SAM Fresh 2024 closed at SAM on Sunday 11 August.
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New installation at Shepparton Art Museum reflects on historic Olympic moment.
16 August 2024
New installation at Shepparton Art Museum reflects on historic Olympic moment.
Shepparton Art Museum (SAM) is pleased to present Peter, Tommie & John / reliving the dream, a large-scale textile installation from Melbourne-based artist Stewart Russell exploring one of the most influential political actions of the 20th century through the eyes of Australian Olympic silver medallist Peter Norman.
Expanding on an earlier project created by Russell in collaboration with late artist Kate Daw, Peter, Tommie & John / reliving the dream tells the story of the historic podium-top act of protest against racism instigated by African American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos, together with Australian athlete Peter Norman, at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico following their record-breaking final in the 200-metre track event. Whilst Tommie Smith and John Carlos returned to the USA as heroes of the civil rights movement, Peter Norman returned to Australia to suffer unofficial sanction and ridicule.
Featuring images and transcriptions drawn from interviews conducted with Peter prior to his death in 2006, the new works focus on the triumph of the athletes’ personal friendship, which endured in spite of their protest’s continued political repercussions.
Danny Lacy, SAM Acting Artistic Director, says of the exhibition:
“These new works from Stewart Russell are a timely tribute to the extraordinary actions of Peter Norman and his personal sacrifice to a cause he believed in. While the images of the protest will be familiar to many, the story behind the image and of what followed are lesser known, though equally as fascinating. As we enjoy the 2024 Paris Olympics, we encourage our community to visit SAM, reflect on Peter’s words and experiences, and learn more about a little-known moment in Australian sporting history.”
Stewart Russell: Peter, Tommie & John / reliving the dream is now showing at SAM with free entry.
About the artist:
Stewart Russell (b. 1965, Scotland) employs a range of media to examine narrative of cultural inheritance, collective identity, nationalism, and social justice.
Formerly working as director of London Printworks, Russell established Melbourne-based studio Spacecraft in 2000, where he works individually and collaboratively with artists, architects, and fashion designers to produce artworks which can be found in public spaces, galleries, and collections across the world.
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