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Basefield2005 The 2005 Basefield exhibition provided local and international artists with Aesop’s Fables as a theme. Curator Jade Palmer has his own stories to tell, writes Catherine Woods.

Jade Palmer has met some damned interesting and talented people in his time. From Puerto Rican street artists to UK hip hop and graffiti masters, he certainly has some stories to tell. He’s the sort of guy you’d happily get chatting to down at the local and end up there late into the next morning, still entertained, still charmed.

Palmer is a passionate advocate of young artists and he makes a point of meeting all the artists he works with, finding that many become close friends. Not your average curator, Palmer has a dream of establishing a warehouse living space/gallery where he can happily set up home with his trusty canine and provide an outlet for up-and-coming artists to get their work seen and know that their interests are the curator’s number one priority. Basefield is Palmer’s ongoing project – a fundraising event that shakes the pom poms for local and international artists who share

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his passion for self-expression and community values.

The first Basefield exhibition was held in 2003, displaying 50 works by 35 local and international artists. The theme was ‘The Great Divide’ and artists were invited to remix a silkscreen provided by Palmer.

This year, over 80 artists contributed more than 150 works based on the theme of Aesop’s Fables – remember The Tortoise and the Hare and The Boy Who Cried Wolf tales? Aesop’s Fables are those classic morality stories mostly featuring animals and family characters. Each artist received a small collection of fables to explore in their work for the 2005 exhibition, The Commons. They were otherwise given free reign to experiment with material, sizing and medium. The theme provided endless possibilities. What inspired Palmer to select Aesop’s Fables as the flavour for Basefield 2005? “One morning I woke after a strange dream,” he recalls, “and while washing myself with Aesop products I thought, bingo, what a theme!”

Closer to the truth behind the inspiration was probably

Palmer’s role as a social worker.

“The clients I have worked with... lately have been the older population who continue to live their lives even when they exist in a culture that more often than not has no place or time for them. Everyone has a story to tell, and I actually get a lot from my relationships with them as they hand down their wisdom and life lessons.”

One uniting factor between all the artists involved in Basefield was their passion for storytelling and self-expression. Though considerably younger than Palmer’s social work clients, they all had rich and diverse experiences from which to draw inspiration.

“I think art can and does change peoples lives and speaks to them on levels that words cannot,” says Palmer. “I think art scares people... but with each exhibition I see, I walk

away asking myself what it is I really want to achieve and who I really want to be. The presence of art in galleries, on the streets, via the internet and seeing the creative drive of so many people around the world encouraged me to stand up and establish Basefield.”

With the responsibility of a full-time job, Palmer credited friend Cassandra Allen with helping to organise the exhibition. The artworks had to be sourced, collated, framed and hung. “It’s usually around six months of planning, organising and speaking with artists involved... which mostly happens in the dark hours by candlelight.”

He has certainly had no shortage of offers from artists wanting to exhibit, which made the job a little easier. “A lot of the people that I have built relationships with put me in touch with others and then the emails and phone calls start back and forth until we both get an

this page left: Folk gathering on the opening night of 'The Commons' exhibition to view the creative feast on display. Over 500 people attended the opening. right: Anyone for pizza...

The beautiful creation of Kid Acne opposite page left: Ben Frost, the master of social commentary and creating rules for radicals. centre: Jupiter and Robert Mars get down to business. right: Work by the infamous Stormie Mills.

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I think art can and does change peoples lives and speaks to them on levels that words cannot,” says Palmer. “I think art scares people... but with each exhibition I see, I walk away asking myself what it is I really want to achieve and who I really want to be. The presence of art in galleries, on the streets, via the internet and seeing the creative drive of so many people around the world encouraged me to stand up and establish Basefield.

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idea of what’s possible. Mainly it’s through word of mouth and people contacting me to get involved. Usually I have a good look through their body of work and search for something that is passionate and fresh in its approach.”

Despite the quality and unique talent of the artists involved in Basefield, Palmer says that many struggle to make a living and battle to cover their rent and food costs. “It is the artist that often comes out worse, and the collectors and gallery owners that benefit,” he laments.

“Artists are often told that they have sold out when selling work for a high price, or exhibiting in a large well-established gallery space. Most of the time, they’re only making five bucks an hour creating their work while receiving little recognition.

Ironically,” he adds, “the ‘success’ of this artist is then determined by [collectors] and... the media who dictate what’s cool and what’s not.”

Palmer is adamant that the artists with whom he works have a strong sense of community and maintain their loyalty to the independent

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artist-run spaces that have supported them. This sentiment extends to community-based charities also, and Basefield has successfully supported the Mirabel Foundation and Positive Women Victoria. “It is just that moment of change which I think is important,” he explains, “planting the seed and having people think differently about those around them even if it is not the charity selected for Basefield. These days we see lots of art shows, t-shirt comps and other projects on the web supporting charities and, without blowing my own trumpet, I think Basefield and the artists involved have helped to encourage this kind of thinking to happen.”

Palmer has much to be proud of; he has organised an inspired and exciting exhibition and brought together a huge range of artistic and cultural differences, all united by those essential qualities: being extremely passionate and very fresh. “I am always inspired by people that have the guts to get up and do something they love even when others don’t approve,” he says. “I admire people who just keep going and going after each fall off the horse. I guess

this attitude stems from loving what you do. People who give it a go and take a risk get a lot of respect from me!”

I ask him to pick five artists from this year’s exhibition to profile. It wasn’t easy to choose, but here they are in his own words.

Christofer Chin: An artist and individual who I respect immensely. His work for this year’s show really hit the nail on the head with his fable The Flies and The Honey Pot, which he explores using ninjas dressed in red as the honey pot, and one in a black ninja outfit as the fly. His work is very raw and fast paced in its creation, but so intense and full of life that you can just feel the panic of the fly as it is being overpowered by the honey.

He uses an interesting mix of media, which includes paper, ink and fire. It is one of the

smallest pieces to be exhibited in this year’s show, but for me is one of the largest because of the ferocity he achieves in his exploration. I often enjoy small scale artwork, especially because it brings the viewer closer and allows time to adjust to what is being shared in a safe space. When the smaller scale work is done correctly, it actually becomes larger than life and very personal. Chin is not frightened by the opportunity to experiment and move outside of his comfort zone.

Stormie Mills: The opposite of Chin, in the sense that Mills’ final creation is larger scale and is the biggest piece to be exhibited at this year’s show.

His work can be seen at first as a simple character produced using an aerosol can, but on close inspection goes a lot deeper and can leave you in a trance for hours at a time. His work for me is timeless and raw and influenced by his time painting on the streets. It often reminds me of the work by Rodin giving

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I am always inspired by people that have the guts to get up and do something they love even when others don’t approve. I admire people who just keep going and going after each fall off the horse. I guess this attitude stems from loving what you do. People who give it a go and take a risk get a lot of respect from me!

me time to contemplate the meaning of our existence. Mills’ work is monochromatic and influenced by exterior surfaces, which gives a sense of isolation and alienation.

In saying that, I feel a huge connection to his characters and his work, often feeling at ease when around his art or around him in person; an all round nice guy who really identifies with the wider community.

I was pretty lucky and got to go through some of his visual diaries that contain his life on a daily basis. It was a black book that made me smile, cry, become confused, and fall into...

Kid Acne: A super talented artist whose contribution to this year’s show is out of this world. Acne actually created 112 small-sized pizza boxes and on each one he drew and painted characters from his comics that very much for me resemble the characters from the classic film Dark Crystal. The time and effort that went into this creation was amazing, and the end piece really stands out for a lot of people. The playfulness of his creation, and the simplicity of

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his characters actually vanishes and his art, once installed, becomes a kingdom from a far off world that is full of complex interactions and at times takes over everything else that is on display.

Kid Acne is also an accomplished graffiti artist and hip hop musician. I sometimes am left wondering if some people actually get to sleep during their lifetime.

Robert Hardgrave: Another artist I greatly respect and spend time chatting with via email is Hardgrave. His work is very small scale, heavy, deep and vibrant in colour often depicting male genitals, holes in hands, upside down faces; and is usually built up of images that I see as kidneys, and other body organs. Hardgrave has a long and challenging history and has experienced several years of health problems, i.e. kidney failure and cancer. Because of this, most of his current works reflect feelings of relief to simply be alive. Hardgrave is someone

who works hard refining his skills, and never seems to put his paintbrush down.

He has said in conversation, “Although glad to feel well, I by no means regret any of the trials my body and soul had to endure. I believe it brought me closer to my true love of drawing and an appreciation for life that was missing in my work prior.

My work contains a fair amount of symbolism that denotes my celebration for life, along with some dark reflection from the past five years.”

For me, Hardgrave has a purpose in his artwork, that is so spiritual and personal it would be difficult for anyone viewing it not to feel a sense of belonging and an understanding of their own mortality. I am a fond collector of his work and have a few pieces hanging on my wall at present, which keep me mesmerised for many hours.

Steve More AKA 1Mor: Another individual who exhibited in this year’s show is More, who it turns out as well as being super talented is a super lovely lad. More’s piece for this year’s show had so much depth and when speaking with him about the creation of it made me go wow! It had pieces

of sandpaper that he had used to create his studio, varnish, cardboard, etc… the process he went through to bring his fable alive was fantastic, and his end result was beyond words.

He carried that piece with him through New Zealand, Asia, Scotland and England. It has an element of many cultures within it and was a part of him on his travels.

To the eye, More’s work can be interpreted as another stencil in which you cut out bits of paper and spray away, but when you actually sit down and truly understand his process, you realise that his creations are built from what he finds throughout his days, and then refines into something that is unique and tangible. He finds beauty in things that many of us would disregard as scrap. ■ In order for Basefield to progress and keep supporting local and international artists, Jade is on the lookout for sponsors. Businesses with a heart for art, who want to show their support, can contact Jade by email: jade@basefield.com

left: Sometimes small is beautiful, and the work of Richard Colman is certainly that and often confronting which keeps you on your toes. centre: Nathan Jurevicius and his diabolic feast. right: Steve More AKA 1MOR.

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