Aaron Butt River Derwent, MONA 5 – 29 July 2017
River Derwent, MONA
River Derwent, MONA is a suite of works that depict the shoreline of the River Derwent in Berridale Tasmania, as well as selected artefacts and the grounds of the Museum of Old and New Art. United by subtle formal and conceptual cues, each work exists in a pair; one painting represents the strange Tasmanian landscape and atmospheric conditions; the other, curious historical objects collected by the museum owner, David Walsh. The coupling creates a situation where one’s gaze meets the exterior and surrounds of the museum and its contents, disavowing the buildings unique internal architecture and thus perpetuating its mysterious public image and perceptions. In the landscapes, the lighting conditions differ considerably - from smoke-like morning clouds to crisp and cloudless afternoons. In the artefact paintings, objects differ considerably in geographical and historical origin, from an 18th Dynasty Scarab to a 20th century Nigerian Crown. Extending upon Kate as Nefertiti at Jan Manton Art Gallery in 2015, a series of paintings depicting my partner as Queen Nefertiti, River Derwent MONA similarly combines the ancient and the contemporary; ancient objects in a contemporary museum in an ancient landscape. Like the museum, River Derwent, MONA aims to complicate straightforward perceptions of time and place to exaggerate, as per MONA’s 2013 exhibition concept, the ‘Theatre of the World’. Aaron Butt, May 2017
MONA (Exterior near Turrell) 2017 oil on canvas 90 x 65 cm $1,650
MONA (Blue Coffin) 2017 oil on canvas 40 x 30 cm $990
MONA (Crown) 2017 oil on canvas 40 x 52 cm $1,100
MONA (Kiefer Pavilion) 2017 oil on canvas 100 x 80 cm $1,900
MONA (Scarab) 2017 oil on canvas 15 x 15 cm $440
MONA (Grounds with Cone Shelter) 2017 oil on canvas 30 x 40 cm $1,000
MONA (Main Road) 2016 oil on canvas 60 x 50 cm $1,100
MONA (Rai Stone) 2016 oil on canvas 30 x 30 cm $660
MONA (River Dewent) 2016 oil on canvas 50 x 20 cm $770
MONA (Pot with Face) 2016 oil on canvas 25 x 30 cm $660
Aaron Butt CV Education 2016 - Master of Fine Arts (Research) Candidate, QUT 2014 - Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) First Class, QUT 2013 - Bachelor of Fine Arts (Visual Arts) with Distinction, QUT Solo Exhibitions 2017 - (Forthcoming) Missed Encounter III (Frank Moran Gallery) 2017 - (Forthcoming) River Derwent, MONA II (Hub Gallery, Caboolture Regional Art Gallery) 2017 - (Forthcoming) River Derwent, MONA (Jan Manton Art Gallery) 2017 - (Forthcoming) Missed Encounter II (Maverick Hair and Art Space) 2016 - Pursuit of the Real (Pine Rivers Regional Art Gallery, Window Gallery) 2015 - Kate as Queen Nefertiti (Jan Manton Art Gallery) 2015 - Missed Encounter (Bus Projects) 2015 - Rapture (Hub Gallery, Caboolture Regional Art Gallery) Group Exhibitions 2017 - Moreton Bay Region Art Awards 2016 - The Churchie National Emerging Art Prize (QUT Art Museum) 2016 - Gather Awards (St. Ita's Primary School) 2016 - Clayton Utz Art Award (Clayton Utz) 2016 - Cream of the Crop (Queensland Regional Art Awards Touring Exhibition) 2016 - Tender Turf (Post Datum Collective) 2016 - Noosa Art Awards (Noosa Regional Gallery) 2016 - Moreton Bay Region Art Awards (Strathpine Community Centre) 2015 - Doug Moran National Portrait Prize Semi-Finals (Moran Art Prizes) 2015 - Peace and Quiet (State Library of Queensland) 2015 - Moreton Bay Region Art Awards (Strathpine Community Centre) 2015 - Queensland Regional Art Awards Finals (Flying Arts Alliance) 2014 - Lethbridge 10 000 (Lethbridge Gallery) 2014 - Sunshine Coast New Media Art Prize (Caloundra Regional Gallery) 2014 - Excerpts (The Block Gallery, QUT) 2014 - Everything All At Once (H Block, QUT) 2014 - Translink Extended loan (Translink Centre) 2014 - Doug Moran National Portrait Prize Semi-Finals (Moran Art Prizes) 2014 - Connections Between (H Block, QUT) 2014 - Tools of the Trade (Jugglers Art Space) 2014 - Queensland Regional Art Awards Finals (Flying Arts Alliance) 2014 - Marie Ellis OAM Prize for Drawing (Jugglers Art Space) 2014 - Lethbridge 10 000 (Lethbridge Gallery) 2014 - Storage Space (The Hold Artspace) 2014 - Moreton Bay Region Art Awards (Strathpine Community Centre) 2014 - SHAPE of Things to Come: (DIS)CONNECT (The Block Gallery, QUT) 2014 - New World City (The Hold Artspace) 2013 - Homesick (Metro Arts, Warehouse Space) 2013 - Thirteen (H Block, QUT) 2012 - Chimera (The Block Gallery, QUT) 2012 - Rattus Rattus (Jugglers Art Space) 2012 - Bari Festival Opening (H Block, QUT) 2011 - Inspiral (Metro Arts, Warehouse Space)
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Awards 2016 - Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) 2015 - Moreton Bay Region Art Awards, Merit Award 2015 - Brian Tucker Young Artist Development Award 2015 - Maroochydore Music and Visual Art Festival New Media Public Art Mentorship 2014 - The Hild Chenhall Memorial Scholarship 2014 - QUT Professional Practice Award 2014 - University Medal Writing 2017 - Less Than: Art and Reductionism Exhibition Review (QUT Art Museum for BNE Art Writer's program) 2017 - Sit. Pose. Snap (Museum of Brisbane for BNE Art Writer's program) 2016 - Judith Kentish and Hew Chee Fong Reflection (Caboolture Regional Art Gallery for BNE Art) 2016 - Ian Fairweather: A Pursuit of the Real (Pine Rivers Regional Art Gallery, Window Gallery) 2015 - Discovery (Artist Profile Magazine, Issue 30) 2015 - Kate as Queen Nefertiti Catalogue Essay (Jan Manton Art Gallery) Conferences 2016 - WiP Conference: On the Edge (University of Queensland) ACUADS: Adaptation (Queensland Unversity of Technology) Collections Princess Alexandra Hospital Private Collections in Brisbane and Sunshine Coast
1/93 Fortescue St Spring Hill Qld 4000 ! +61 7 3831 3060! Info@janmantonart.com!