FAIR FEATURES

Artpark Sculpture

Alongside our fabulous galleries, we’re bringing a selection of Australian sculptures to the Royal Exhibition Building.

Affordable Art Fair is proud to partner with the ARTPark to bring Australian sculptures for you to experience while at our fair.

Get closer to a diverse range of artworks by sculptors specialising in traditional mediums and methods, including carving and forging.

Lauri Smith

SOL Gallery

Lauri Smith’s large-scale surreal sculpture portrays an elderly woman in her nightie, kneeling forward as she notices her hands are translucent and she can see all of nature through them.

This piece portrays the theme as it comments on the circular nature of life, the extraordinary seen in the ordinary as she notices her hands transforming back to the original source which is nature. Life as circular, connected and made up of the same elements as earth. The extraordinary seen in the ordinary.

Mural By James Price

Gallery Alchemy

James Price is an unapologetically skilled storyteller. His artistic practice employs a distinct, vibrant graphic language that condenses the complexities and contradictions of our times.

Price’s work is able to articulate intricate ideas loaded with pathos, humour and humanity. His paintings, moving image works, sculpture and ceramics visually articulate modern life for those of us unsure whether we should laugh, cry, or do both at once.

Price’s recent gallery work draws a charismatic parallel between the classic historical western form, the pictorial naivety of folk art, and the idiosyncrasies of our ever evolving contemporary culture. Created for a time when our bodies are heavier, and our attention spans lighter, Price’s newest works question, clarify, illuminate and lampoon our contemporary form.

Ben Tankard

Sarah Birtles Art + Advice

Ben Tankard is a painter living and working in the Blue Mountains. He worked for 15 years in a bookstore, prior to becoming a full-time artist five years ago. Books and art have been life-long obsessions and Ben often combines the two.

The primary artistic inspiration for his works is twentieth-century artist Jasper Johns, who took iconic images, such as the American flag, and recreated them as abstract paintings, rich with texture. Ben takes popular book covers and boardgames and recreates them on canvas in a dramatic way, with thick overlapping layers of paint, drips, splatters and splashes.

For the Affordable Art Fair Melbourne 2023, Ben presents an innovative and interactive floor version of his monopoly-inspired paintings, aiming to elevate audience engagement to the next level.

Create With Alice Oehr

Alice Oehr is highly regarded for her iconic and lively artworks that incorporate her love for food, pattern and collage. Her artwork is sought after both nationally and internationally alongside her work as an author-illustrator, which includes the recent Still Life Drawing (Hardie Grant, 2021) and Off to the Market (Scribble, 2022).

At Affordable Art Fair Melbourne, Alice will present a body of work as well as create a beautiful still life installation that will inform her exciting drop-in workshops for art-lovers of all ages to enjoy. You won’t want to miss her affordable artworks or engaging workshops during your visit!