Exhibition Highlights of the Week: Basketmakers of Victoria

To continue the theme of our last “Exhibition Highlights of the Week” post, the diversity of approaches to basket making in our current exhibition “Natural on Knot” is truly astonishing.  Among the most popular materials which has inspired artists in the exhibition is a humble gourd. Maureen King in “Shades of Miss Fisher” (no 42, $160) ingeniously added to the gourd an upright collar and a mother-of-pearl pendant, evoking all the Art Deco glamour and elegance of the beloved TV detective. Cordelyne also found favour as a preferred material with many artists in the exhibition. Diana Pierce’s bold inclusion of upright spikes at the top rim and colourful leaves just above the base of her piece transforms a humble cylindrical basket into a truly exotic and tribal “Totem” (no 52, $150). One of the main philosophies of the Basketmakers of Victoria is to use only found and recycled objects. Joan Leeder most creatively adapted brightly coloured fabrics and discarded window sash cords to create a suite of three vessels – a vase, a bowl, and a plate – in the array of most deliciously mouth-watering colours, which the artist appropriately named “Citrus Gelati” (no 44, $80).

All works in the exhibition are for sale. The exhibition is current until Saturday, 25 October 2014. Visit us during gallery hours or view the exhibition online 24/7 at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/basketmakers-of-victoria-exhibition-2014.html