There's an exciting new exhibition just opened at Form Studio and Gallery in Queanbeyan, of works by Welsh-born artist John Forrester Clack. In his work, "the medium itself takes a leading role rather than acting simply as an expressive tool. In his paintings thick, voluptuous paint is energetically manipulated to create imagery that emerges from the surface. These works blur the boundary between painting and sculpture and his poignant portraits appear free from a literal interpretation of human features. The work appears charged with an overwhelming and dynamic sense of emotion". Our own Sasha Grishin says Forrester Clack's work has "a freshness, uniqueness and immediacy…True visionary art has to be a response to a personal quest and it is this quality above anything else which shines brightest in the art of John Forrester Clack".
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Surely, does anything more need to be said? Works – Paintings and Drawings by John Forrester Clack is showing at Form Studio and Gallery, 1/30 Aurora Avenue, Queanbeyan, until March 29.
Going Steady at ANCA
It's an exciting time to be an artist in Canberra, as this new show, which opens at ANCA on Wednesday, March 18, demonstrates. It features a collection of works by early-career artists who studied painting at the ANU School of Art late last decade, and refined their practices in the interim. "These artists graduated at a time when there was a fervent interest in abstraction in Canberra, which had an undeniable influence on them, though each has strong individual interests which can be seen in their paintings," says curator Annika Harding. "From landscapes, library books and maths to meditation, chaos and apocalyptic allusions, there is something for everyone in this exhibition - you'll just need to look beyond the surface."
Going Steady opens Wednesday, March 18 at ANCA Gallery, 1 Rosevear Place, Dickson, and runs until April 2.
And for something completely different…and Italian
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Italy, Art, History and Emotions, by Principessa Nike Borghese, is showing at The Crisp Galleries, 28234 Hume Highway, Bowning, until May.
New pair at Beaver
Beaver in Deakin has works on paper and ceramics, in a characteristically well-matched pair of shows showing this month. Graeme Drendel has works that are "in a sense, stripped back to the bare essentials. Single figure compositions predominantly, that I would hope encourage a kind of intimacy and a more direct contact with the subject without the distractions, for example, of multiple figures or landscape elements that might usually be the case". And two ceramic artists, Kevin White and Marianne Huhn, are showing functional vessels and forms. Huhn's works – "pots that tell a story" - explore contemporary political themes, while White takes inspiration from traditional Japanese ceramics.
Contact, by Graeme Drendal and Porcelain, by Kevin White and Marianna Huhn, are showing at Beaver Galleries, 81 Denison Street, Deakin, until March 24.
Last days of summer
Matt Higgins has the bittersweet distinction of showing the last show in this year's School of Art summer graduate series, with his show Chemical Potential: a Darkroom Upside Down. It showcases his work on the Chemigram, a camera-less photographic technique "in which the photographer turns alchemist and photography goes back to basics: the inter-play of light and chemistry". Also exhibiting is Safri Shahir, a Malaysian-born artist whose research into an Islamic gravestone that existed between the 15th and 19th centuries in the Malay world, known as Batu Aceh, has led him to reflect on ideas of memory, identity and erasure in his artworks.
Chemical Potential: A Darkroom Upside Down is showing at the Australian National University School of Art Gallery until March 21.
All about Sibelius
This would have been Finnish composer Jean Sibelius' 150th year, and the Finnish Embassy, as it well should, is hosting a chamber trio devoted to his works on Monday evening. "Jean Sibelius' music inspired the painting, sculpture and the literature of his creative contemporaries, and ushered in a golden age of music and art appreciation that would awaken and endow the Finns with a sense of pride in their heritage and encourage their hopes for the possibilities of nationhood," according to a book by Glenda Dawn Goss on the composer's life. To celebrate, the Sibelius 150 Trio – comprising Tuomas Lehto on cello, Siljamari Heikinheimo on violin and Roope Grondahl on piano – is performing on Monday, March 16, 7pm at the Embassy of Finland, 12 Darwin Avenue, Yarralumla. Tickets $35/$30, on the door, or through Ewa Walczuk on 6273 3800, or ewa.walczuk@formin.fi.
Otherworld at the Front
Canberra artist Eve White explores painting as "a path of personal and spiritual development" in a new show at the Front in Lyneham in March. "Created over the past two years, Otherworld uses abstraction to visualise intangible connections and disrupt our sense of autonomy," says the promotional material. "Characterised by contrasting elements, motion, and fractured forms, the paintings of Otherworld evoke duality, ambiguity, and the ephemeral."
Otherworld, by Eve White, is showing at the Front Gallery, 1 Wattle Place, Lyneham, until March 23.
