It's Belconnen's 50th anniversary, and a group of staff at the University of Canberra's faculty of Arts and Design has an exhibition exploring history, memory and the classification of things: "The notion of 'forgotten things' references the ways in which creative practice can recover elements of the recent or distant past, and reconsider them in the present." Nostalgia, in other words! And in Rarities, Sonja Karl celebrates the "beguiling nature of birds", which is, she says, an "absorbing process": "To honour our symbiotic relationship with nature Sonja's artworks focus on the innate freedom of the birds while creating an awareness of those particularly rare birds within the Australian Capital Territory." And Ruby Berry is showing well weavings and suspended basketry forms – "sculptural works that use contrasting textures and organic forms to evoke feelings of comfort and protection. The slow process of weaving allows Ruby to record her gestures of making in each work." The Encyclopedia of Forgotten Things, by the UC Faculty of Arts and Design, Rarities, by Sonja Karl and Encircle, by Ruby Berry, are showing until August 14 at Belconnen Arts Centre, 118 Emu Bank, Belconnen.
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Triangulation at ANCA
Two artists have a dialogue on butterflies, and look at what happens! In this "ongoing collaborative practice‐led research project", Julie Brooke and Susan Buret riff of each other as artists both fascinated by grids, patterns and repetition: "In the summer of 2014 Brooke and Buret independently began making work using the colours and forms of butterflies, evoking the shimmer of the butterfly's wing through their use of colour and pattern. However, these artists approach their investigations from different points of view. Brooke, a former research scientist, created paintings inspired by mathematical structures encountered during a residency in the ANU Department of Applied Mathematics, while Buret's work was inspired by her direct observations of the flora and fauna of her garden." The two respond to each other's work and voila! A new show at ANCA! Triangulation 3, by Julie Brooke and Susan Buret, opens August 3 at ANCA Gallery, 1 Rosevear Place, Dickson, and runs until August 21.
Art, Life and The Other Thing
It's the first full biography of the one and only Brett Whitely, and our own Sasha Grishin will be in conversation with author Ashleigh Wilson on Thursday about how it all came together. "Written with unprecedented behind-the-scenes access, and handsomely illustrated with classic Whiteley artworks, rare notebook sketches and candid family photos, this dazzling biography reveals for the first time the full portrait of a mercurial artist," says the blurb. Wilson and Grishin will be speaking at an ANU/Canberra Times Meet the Author event on Thursday August 4, 6.30pm in Manning Clark Centre.
In plain sight
Congrats to Katy Mutton, whose Australian Cultural Fund campaign raised more than enough for her to complete her contribution to Canberra's inaugural public art festival, Contour 556. Mutton will be transforming the MV Gull - that little commercial cruiser that is a fixture on Lake Burley Griffin – into a "dazzle camouflage"-inspired moving artwork – resplendent in pink and black. More than 90 individuals and organisations donated enough for her to reach 102 per cent of her goal – almost $9000. Can't wait for Contour 556, which kicks off October 21 and runs until November 13.
Assembled landscapes
Congratulations also to artist Claire Primrose, who this month was named the winner of the Goulburn Art Prize, for her work Assembled Landscapes (diptych), one of her characteristically atmospheric canvases: "I'm inspired and informed by many different locations from the Australian landscape," she says. "I'm also interested in recreating the surfaces, textures and colours evocative of a particular place, although each work is a culmination of many different images, spaces and experiences, achieved through memory and experimentation."
M16 Open Day
Do you love peeking into the workspaces of writers, artists, designers and other creative types? Me too. One can only dream from a distance, sometimes. But for a bit of vicarious creativeness, you could do worse than head over to M16 Artspace for their public open day on August 6. The Griffith-and-formerly-Fyshwick institution has been described as a "microcosm of the wider Canberra art community", and has 31 professional artists' studios. Visitors will have the chance to check out the studios, where artists will have work on sale, as well as take a free class with studio artist Suzanne Moss, and see the current studio tenants' showcase exhibition, Wall to Wall, which runs until August 14. M16 Artspace open day is on Saturday August 6, 12-4.00pm at 21 Blaxland Crescent, Griffith.
Dawn and dusk at Beaver
Alicia Mozqueira has an exhibition of beautiful oil paintings depicting the Canberra landscape at Beaver Galleries opening this week: "I am interested in romanticism: our individual interaction with the natural world," she says. "These paintings are inspired by the renewing seasonal climate, the pristine quality of the light, and the skies and mountain air that I love about this region." Dawn and dusk, by Alicia Mozqueira, opens August 4 at Beaver Galleries, 81 Denison Street, Deakin, and runs until August 21.
Vale Robert Foster
A lot has been said and written in recent weeks about the tragic and untimely death of F!NK designer Robert Foster. But sometimes just a look at some of his actual work says it all; what a loss. Craft ACT currently has a pop-up exhibition of his work on display in its lightbox gallery, alongside a condolence book to share memories and tributes.
