NEWS


FRIDAY 15 AUGUST 2014

OFFICIAL OPENING - GROUP EXCHANGE: 2ND TAMWORTH TEXTILE TRIENNIAL 


Returning to Tamworth Regional Gallery for the official opening of the 2nd Tamworth Textile Triennial. My installation, In/animate, features alongside works from 21 other artists from around Australia.

This year's event focusses on collaboration, with a busy program of activities planned across the weekend. Sure to be a rewarding visit!

Image: In/animate (zoochorous) 2014 (detail)(Photography: Michael Marzik)


JUNE 2014

WEEKEND ENCAUSTIC WORKSHOP

Studio workshop with Jennifer Valmadre, an amazing Far North Queensland-based practitioner of encaustic painting, ceramics and other media.

Image: Dabbling in colour at the artist's rainforest studio in Lake Placid, Queensland (Photography: Louisa Ennis-Thomas)


MARCH 2014

WOMEN IN THE ARTS: BOOKED

KICKARTS CONTEMPORARY ARTS


In celebration of International Women's Day, Knock Knock Contemporary Artists' Initiative presents their annual Women in the Arts event.

'Booked', an exhibition of artist books and text based works  is on display at KickArts Contemporary Arts, Cairns.

My work for this show, 1433: all at sea considers the plight of international asylum seekers crossing Australia's northern waters. Each bottle represents the incidence of loss of life at sea, documenting the deaths of 1433 individuals never to receive the refuge they sought.

Images: 1433: all at sea (2014) (details)(Photography: Michael Marzik)


OCTOBER 2013

SELECTED FOR QUEENSLAND REGIONAL ART AWARDS TOURING EXHIBITION

Announcing that my work, Hanging gardens: reflections has been selected to feature in 'Living Change' Qld Regional Art Awards Touring Exhibition.

Curated by Timothy Morrell, former curator of Australian Contemporary Art at Queensland Art Gallery, the exhibition will be launched at the State Library of Qld in Feb 2014 and will travel to 5 regional gallery venues across Queensland until early 2015.

Image: Hanging gardens: reflections (2012), perforated aluminium with mixed media  (Photography: Michael Marzik)


AUGUST 2013

SUB-150

A new sculptural series for SUB-150 The Affordable Art Show, run by our collective, Knock Knock, as part of the Cairns Festival.

'SUB-150 showcases small studies, maquettes and series of exploratory works. This annual exhibition provides an experimental platform, which gives professional artists from the Far North the chance to release new work and to explore fresh ideas within their practice.'

This series, In/organic, forms part of my developmental process for a major work to be featured in the 2nd Tamworth Textile Triennial in 2014.

(Image: Louisa Ennis-Thomas In/organic I - VI (2013) mixed media)


JULY 2013

VISIT TO TAMWORTH

Off to experience a chilly Tamworth winter and to meet with fellow participants and curator of next year's Tamworth Textile Triennial, Cecilia Heffer.

More familiar with the balmy winters of the tropical north, I will certainly be packing some woolly gear!

 (Image: Copyright Tamworth Regional Council)


APRIL 2013

2nd TAMWORTH TEXTILE TRIENNIAL

Wonderful news... I have been selected to create a major work for the 2nd Tamworth Textile Triennial at Tamworth Regional Gallery in 2014 and Touring Exhibition from 2014-16. An amazing opportunity as one of only two Queensland artists chosen to represent our state.


MARCH 2013

STATES OF PLAY: CONTEMPORARY AUSTRALIAN WOMEN IN REGIONAL ARTS PRACTICE


FEB 2013

SIMMER: CONTEMPORARY WORKS FROM FAR NORTH QUEENSLAND

69 Smith St Gallery

Fitzroy, Melbourne

6 - 24 FEBRUARY 2013

Simmer: Contemporary Works from Far North Queensland features sculpture and installation works from the 4 members of our collective, Knock Knock Contemporary Artists' Initiative based in Cairns. If you haven't visited this touring show yet, please drop by and see us in the gallery this week!

Listen here to Knock Knock's radio interview on Melbourne's 3CR 855AM.


DEC 2012

NAVA INTERVIEW

The friendly staff at NAVA recently arranged an interview regarding my successful ArtStart grant application. I shared some up-coming plans and my approach to tackling the application process. This interview can be found on their blog here.



NOV 2012

GRAF WORKSHOP

My son, Henry, worked with graf artist, Daniel Wallwork, on this amazing work for his room this month...the best birthday present ever!  Thanks for workshopping with him, Daniel – he is a huge fan!


OCT / NOV 2012

EXHIBITION: INTENTION TO EXIT

Cairns Regional Gallery
12 Oct – 18 Nov 2012

Our North Queensland-based ARI, Knock Knock Contemporary Artists’ Initiative, currently has a group exhibition, Intention to Exit on display at Cairns Regional Gallery. The exhibition features sculptural and installation-based works adopting the modus operandi of working ‘beyond the frame.’


AUG 2012

MELBOURNE ART FAIR

Off to the Melbourne Art Fair as part of my ArtStart project. Time for visiting other Melbourne ARIs, galleries and exhibition venues also during this trip.


JULY 2012

ETCHING WORKSHOP

Fortunate to participate in 3 days of etching workshops with the fantastic Michael Kempson as a part of an Artist-in-Residence program arranged by Inkmasters Cairns Inc for our  inaugural Ink Fest, a wonderful, ambitious festival program celebrating all things print-making.


APRIL/ JUNE 2012

REACH ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROJECT

Working in 3 different Far North Queensland primary schools to deliver the ‘Making My Mark’ Primary Contemporary Arts Workshops & Exhibition program.


MARCH 2012

AUSTRALIA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS - ARTSTART GRANT

Very excited to have been successful in my first application to the Australia Council for the Arts for the ArtStart grant! The funds have come at a perfect time to assist with building my arts practice and seeking new audiences for my work. As a regional artist, this funding support will enable me to build creative links with other regions and to explore opportunities to exhibit more extensively. Thank you Australia Council!


FEB / MAR 2012

QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY (GOMA)
TRAVELLING EXHIBITION: RON MUECK, IN BED

Ron Mueck’s monumental work, In Bed, has travelled up the coast to Cairns to be featured at KickArts Contemporary Arts. Wonderful to have such a significant work on display in regional cities and I am very fortunate to be working as a gallery attendant during the exhibition. People have been flooding through the doors each day so excited to see this work for the first time or to re-visit this amazing piece in their home town. Hope to see more exciting exhibitions coming this way from the Queensland Art Gallery.


NOV 2011

PORTRAITURE EXHIBITION - THE BLUNT

Cairns artists ready themselves for the annual exhibition, The Blunt Edge of Portraiture.  This year’s exhibition has a line-up of 80 artists busy in their studios producing works featuring fellow artists and makers from the Cairns region.


NOV 2011

WAH SYMPOSIUM WRAP UP

Knock Knock Contemporary Artists’ Initiative Forum
 Venue:  KickArts Contemporary Arts
 10.30am – 12.30pm Sat 26 Nov
 Knock Knock Contemporary Artists’ Initiative invites local artists to get together to share ideas and tips picked up from the recent WAH Symposium (a National Association for the Visual Arts event). This forum opens a discussion about the development of artist run projects in the Cairns region. If you have ever thought about opening an artist-run space or working on a collaborative project with fellow creatives, participate in the forum with us or simply come along to discover more about artist run initiatives.

With more than 85 artist groups from around Australia, the WAH Symposium in Sydney this year, offered a packed programme of round-table discussions on ways artists can work together to create opportunities and engage audiences within their local communities. Discussion topics included: business tools and advice for running ARIs, innovative funding models, interdisciplinary creative projects, regional arts and much more.


SEPT 2011

CHARITY ART AUCTION FOR BREAST CANCER

Local artists are invited to create a themed bag or bra for an annual fund-raising auction in support of breast cancer research.

Thousands of Australians face breast cancer each year and struggle with the mental adjustment required following treatment.

My bag is in memory of a much loved aunt, lost to cancer this year. She is an aunt, wife, sister, mother, grandmother, friend and neighbour and so much more to all of us. Lesley Burgell – every bit as beautiful, inside and out.

Image

Every bit as beautiful… (2011)

fabric, quilting thread, bra wire, wadding


AUG 2011

WAH SYMPOSIUM, SYDNEY

Representing our Cairns-based artist group, Knock Knock Contemporary Artists’ Initiative at First Draft and NAVA’s inaugural ARI Symposium, WAH, We Are Here!  An international symposium with guest speakers and plenty of opportunities to network and source valuable information for running an effective ARI. We will definitely be attending the next one - more please NAVA!
IMAGE:
National Association for the Visual Arts
WAH Symposium Day 2
Fraser Studios, Sydney
Roundtable Discussions
Photo: Micaela Giffney


MAY / JUNE 2011

EXHIBITION: EARTH WHISPERS

Earth Whispers, my first major solo exhibition, opens this month at Cairns Regional Gallery as part of the annual Loft Emerging Artists programme. Artist Talk 2.00pm, before the official opening at 2.30pm Saturday 7th May, 2011.  Guest Speaker: Artist and Gallery Director, Julie Poulsen

Earth Whispers is a series of ‘paintings’ and sculptural works, which reflect upon the complex human relationship with the natural environment. Drawing upon a personal symbolism, the work explores narratives of creative versus decay, preservation versus destruction.’ (Exhibition Catalogue)


JAN 2011

EXHIBITION – DOMESTIC8: SCULPTURAL ASSEMBLAGE

Solo exhibition, Domestic8 – Sculptural Assemblage, on display at c1907 Contemporary Artspace, Cairns.  Exhibition Dates: 11 – 22 January, 2011. Official Opening: 6.30pm Friday 14th January 2011. Guest speaker: Vide Smith, Sculptor & Arts Educator.