Numerous friends of the gallery gathered on Thursday night, 6 February 2014, to celebrate the opening of the first ever Melbourne exhibition of recent paintings and works on paper by the renowned Tasmanian artist, John Ancher. The exhibition was officially opened by Marco Luccio, who also shared his insights into the artworks on display. 

Dear Friends, 

A reminder that our new exhibition, "Insight and Sprawl"", recent paintings and drawings by the renowned Tasmanian artist, John Ancher, is opening tomorrow night from 6pm to 8pm.


John says about the works in this exhibition: "The paintings in Insight and Sprawl seek to proclaim a personal imagery. Colour is used to engage emotional attachment. Symbolism and focused abstraction contribute a syntax to the visual language. Answers are not offered, only hints of possibility.

"INSIGHT presents mindscapes. The Greek Cross is always a starting point. By eroding the geometric certainty attached to this emblem of civilised thought and attainment, the paintings explore abstract ideas such as subterfuge, anguish, and discovery.

"SPRAWL presents landscapes. The cellular nature of our living environment is reflected upon in paintings that suggest the entrapement of those who dwell there. The regimented landscape imposed on the natural world conceals private ambition behind the mask of decency."

The artist will be present at the opening. The exhibition will be officially launched by Marco Luccio. 

Hope to see you all there!

Exhibition Highlights of the Week #5: 

As selected by Eugene Barilo von Reisberg, Consultant, Quadrant Gallery.

Matthew WATTS, “Suntrap 2” (no 14, mixed media on paper, $320)

Eugene’s first choice as the Exhibition Highlight of the Week is “Suntrap 2” by Matthew Watts: “In the exhibition dominated by figuration, Matthew’s works naturally stand out. While I cannot be certain of Matthew’s influences, the work appeals to me because of its oblique references to Russian Constructivism and pronounced echoes of the Australian early modernist artist, Frank Hinder. It is also one of those works in the exhibition that really needs to be examined closely and in great detail, for only thusly one can truly appreciate and admire the complexity of Matthew’s drawing technique and the rich textural quality of his surfaces.”

Sue TOP, Fitting Together (no 4, collograph print, $220)

Eugene has chosen next Sue Top’s “Fitting Together”: “In a similar way to Watts’s work, Top’s collagraph prints stand out in the exhibition due to their uniqueness of subject matter and approach. It is an image that once repulses and intrigues. Sue has captured the viscerality of science and biology; the universe of dissections, test tubes, Petri dishes, and tissue samples squashed between miniature glass plates. If you wish, the most intimate, the most naked portrait of self that one can imagine. But at the same time she has created images of great beauty; of elegant colour gradations and subtle tonal variations; of compositional balance and rhythmic movement that pulsates and reverberates throughout her enigmatically imaginative works.” 

Julie CHIFFEY, “Bay of Fires 2, Tasmania” (no 108, acrylic on canvas, $370)

Eugene’s final choice for the Highlight of the Week is Julie Chiffey’s “Bay of Fires 2, Tasmania”: “The Summer Exhibition is truly remarkable for the sheer number of landscapes contained within, which showcases both the importance of Australian landscape as a continuous source of inspiration for Australian artists and the aesthetic diversity of approaches to this subject matter by the exhibiting artists. I find myself drawn to Chiffey’s painting because it conveys, almost in a Cézanne-esque manner, not only what the landscape looks like but also what individual objects within the landscape feel like. One can almost sense the full weight of those huge, grey, cold granite boulders in the middle ground of the composition. The clear definition of the shapes and colour blocking within Chiffey’s paintings places her works within the context of the Australian modernist tradition and display echoes of Fred Williams and Michael Shannon.”

The exhibition is current until Saturday, 1 February.

View complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/summer-exhibition.html 

Exhibition Highlights of the Week #3 –

as selected by Cresina Tillman, 
Interior Design Specialist, Quadrant Design Architects.

Marian QUIGLEY, “Buttock Blues” (no 28, acrylic on canvas, $300)

Cresina’s first choice for the Exhibition Highlights of the Week is “Buttock Blues”, by Marian Quigley, the multi-award winning artist based in the Bass Coast region of Victoria. The painting is a joyous celebration of colour, movement, and free-flowing forms. “I really enjoy the sense of design within this work, and admire the artist’s ability to combine the flowing lines, the bright colours, and the inspiration from nature and the human body in one harmonious composition,” says Cresina of the painting. 

Otto BORON, “Catch!” (no 52, oil on canvas, $980)

Cresina has also singled out “The Catch!”, by the Italian-born, Melbourne-based, award-wining artist Otto Boron, whose works were profiled on ABC’s Art Nation television program in 2010. The painting is one of the many works in the exhibition featuring birds and animals within a landscape setting. “This little work is remarkable for the layers upon layers of pigments which result in a richly textured surface of the painting. Yet in spite of its textural complexity the image remains sharp and precise; all elements within the composition are sharply defined,” comments Cresina.

Jane HENRY, “The Last Three” (no 71, basketry, stitched pine needles, antique bottle necks, $250)

Cresina’s third Exhibition Highlight of the Week is “The Last Three”, by Jane Henry, a member of the highly esteemed Basketmakers of Victoria group, whose works are richly represented throughout the Summer Exhibition. Henry’s pieces utilise a variety of natural and found media, including antique ceramic bottle necks. “I enjoy the overall sense of design within these works. The usage of diverse materials creates highly textured, intricate, and complex patterns. The implementation of recycled materials is also quite ingenious,” remarks Cresina.

 

View complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/summer-exhibition.html 

All works in the exhibition are available for sale and immediate pick-up - a perfect and unique gift for Christmas!

Exhibition Highlights of the Week #2 - 

as chosen by Imke Beutmann, Senior Architect, 
Quadrant Design Architects.

Simon NOWICKI, “Mussel Man (Ortigia, Sicily)” (no 8, Digital Type C Print, $380)

Imke’s first choice for the Exhibition Highlight of the Week is “Mussel Man (Ortigia, Sicily)”, by the respected Melbourne-based photographer Simon Nowicki. It depicts a mussel gatherer partially submerged under water, which abstracts his lower torso and legs. “This is a very striking and iconic image,” says Imke of the photograph. “Nowicki’s camera turns the simple fisherman into a mythical-looking sea creature, like a modern-day Poseidon, ruler of the seas.” 

Judy PERFECT, “Innocent as a Lamb”, (no 111, Watercolour, $400)

Judy Perfect’s “Innocent as a Lamb” also caught Imke’s eye as an Exhibition Highlight of the Week. This is one of the four watercolours in the exhibition by the artist featuring birds and animals. “What I admire most about this work is Judy’s technical abilities,” comments Imke. “The work is very minimal, as the artist applied diluted pigments in very thin layers. Yet the image of the baby lamb is immediately recognisable, and she has also caught something of its character.”

Maria BARBARO, “Beach Babes 2”, (no 81, acrylic on linen, $495)

Imke’s third Highlight of the Week is “Beach Babes II”, by the Melbourne-based award-winning artist Maria Barbaro. Maria’s selection of works in the exhibition highlights the diversity of her artistic practice and includes paintings as well as limited edition linocuts. “Beach Babes II” is also one of the numerous paintings, watercolours, and photographs in the exhibition featuring the beach, reflecting Australia’s love affair with ‘surf and sun’. “Barbaro has really caught the atmosphere and the diffused effects of sunlight in this painting,” observes Imke. “I also enjoy her sharp and tongue-in-cheek observation of the women. Some are fully covered up, others are sunburnt, and some had lowered their bathing suit straps as one would do to avoid tan lines.”

View complete exhibition online at  http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/summer-exhibition.html 

All works in the exhibition are available for sale and immediate pick-up - a perfect and unique gift for Christmas!

SUMMER exhibition features 182 works by more than fifty artists, and this week we have asked Pam Jackson, Director of Quadrant Gallery, to select three works as 'Exhibition Highlights of the Week'.

Pam selected the following works: 


Judy PERFECT, Fine Feathers (no 110, watercolour, $400): 

"This delightful work shows the skill of the artist very well – the expert blending of the pigment and the light touch of the artist has created an image of a bird that has both dignity and personality. It is the simplicity of this image that makes it work. It needs nothing else."

Sonja ROBAR, The Surfers (no 75, mixed media, $295):

"The Surfers epitomises Summer – the theme of this exhibition. The artist has created an iconic Australian image using photography and digital imaging. Mounted on an aluminium backing, this work has a very contemporary look that verges upon abstract. Robar has chosen a classic summer scene of surfers at the beach, but has cleverly avoided cliché in the use of her unique view and presentation of the work."

Darren GILBERT, Seed Head (no 6, metal & wood sculpture, $795):

"This work has an elegance of shape despite the medium of rusted metal and rough wood. It symbolises the balance of life in the Australian countryside: the necessity of making do with what you have yet creating something beautiful from it. The delicacy of shape belies the tough core of metal – something that seeds need to survive and flourish."



All works in the exhibition are available for sale and immediate collection. 

The exhibition is open until Saturday, 1 February 2014 (by appointment only between 23 December 2013 and 13 January 2014).

View complete exhibition online at  
http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/summer-exhibition.html 

TONY JACKSON

This week’s Work of the Week from Tony Jackson’s exhibition ‘Forest Kaleidoscope’ is ‘Forest Red’ (no. 24, digital print on portfolio photorag paper, ed of 9, 55 x 82 cm, $550 (unframed) / $750 (framed)).

This photograph is distinguished for the vibrancy of its colours, as Jackson captures the clearing in the forest ablaze in the red of the setting sun. The bold contrast between the dark foreground and luminous background evoke the colour palettes of the distinguished Australian artist, Albert Tucker.

View the complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/tony-jackson.html

JANETTE THOMPSON

This week’s Work of the Week from Janette Thompson’s exhibition ‘Birds and Mammals’ is ‘Numbat Rising’ (no 6, pencil on arches aquarelle, 117 x 79 cm $ 950).

Thompson has perfectly caught in this drawing the marsupial’s kinetic energy as it rises on its hind paws to survey its surrounding with cautious curiosity. Like so many other drawings in the exhibition, ‘Numbat Rising’ also showcases the artist’s most meticulous execution, attention to detail, and an uncanny ability to convey the varied textures, sensations, and natural subtle colour gradations within the animal’s fur.

View selected works from the exhibition online 
at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/janette-thompson.html

NORM BORG

This week’s Work of the Week from Norm Borg’s exhibition ‘Zooids’ is ‘Mr Curly - Tea’ (no. 17, glass, 35.5 x 12 cm, $ 475).

Together with other works in the exhibition, ‘Mr Curly’ showcases Borg’s ingenuity and dexterity in handling and manipulating the malleable and yet at the same time extremely fragile medium of glass. The subtle tonal gradations within this and other glass sculptures further imbues the pieces in the exhibition with a sensation of weightlessness, elegance, and whimsicality.

View the complete exhibition online at
  http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/norm-borg.html

This week we are bringing you a selection of works from each of the three exhibitions which are currently on view at our gallery. 

Janette Thompson’s ‘Paradise Bird’ (no 13, pencil, acrylic and oil stick on arches aquarelle, $ 1,100) showcases most advantageously her artistic talents. 

The meticulous execution utilises a variety of media to create vibrantly coloured and richly textured surfaces. It is also reflective of the artist’s close observation of – and ongoing fascination with – the Australian flora and fauna, which is amply represented in her current exhibition.

View selected works from the exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/janette-thompson.html

Tony Jackson’s ‘Forest Attitude’ (no. 17, digital print on portfolio photorag paper, ed of 9, 55 x 82 cm, $550 (unframed) / $750 (framed)) expresses his love of nature, which provides a continuous source of inspiration for Tony's photographs. 


The diffused focus allows the viewer to dwell on the essence of the background landscape. The accidental bird popping up within the picture frame is reflective of Australian forests as a lived environment as well as of the photographer’s own impish sense of humour.

View the complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/tony-jackson.html

This week’s Work of the Week from Norm Borg’s exhibition ‘Zooids’ is 

Norm Borg’s glass creations, such as ‘Large Polyp - Orange Blue Murrine’ (no. 20, glass, 49 x 16 cm, $ 680), complement and complete the symbiosis between our three current exhibitions inasmuch as all three artists turn for inspiration to nature. 

The rich colours and inimitable shapes reverberate throughout the gallery and create artistic and aesthetic dialogues between the artists.

View the complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/norm-borg.html


All three exhibitions are current until Saturday, 23 November 2013.

We are thrilled to announce the opening of our three new exhibitions - recent paintings and drawings by Janette Thompson; photography by Tony Jackson; and contemporary glass sculpture by Norm Borg.

Janette Thompson is a Melbourne-based artist specialising in painting, drawing, and printmaking. Her current exhibition reflects the artist’s fascination with the local fauna. Most of the drawings are meticulously created with coloured pencils. Complex layering of pigments conveys differing textures of marsupials’ fur, and the colourful plumage of different bird species.  

Tony Jackson is a Melbourne-based painter, photographer, and architect. The current body of work is inspired by his continuous fascination with nature and the environment.Jackson says about this works: “In this series of images I explore the colours, vibrancy and moods. My experience of life informs me that clarity is an elusive state. These images celebrate this aspect and allow the viewer’s own emotions to permeate these forests.”

Norm Borg is an East-Gippsland based glass artist and sculptor, founder and director of Tallon Glass studios in Nungurner. Borg describes his distinct glass art style as “focussing on organic shapes and surface manipulation, using colours and shapes found in natural and manmade environments.” His recent works of bold contemporary shapes and organic forms draw on the patterns and colours abstracted from a fusion of eucalyptus bark and modern architecture.



The exhibitions will be on view until Saturday, 23 November 2013.