© Martin Browne Contemporary © All images copyright Adrienne Doig This catalogue is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. COMPILER: Ally Russell-Floyd COLOUR SEPARATIONS: Spitting Image, Sydney PHOTOGRAPHER: Jenni Carter Cover Image: Scene 7, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on cross stitch, 45 x 55 cm
ADRIENNE DOIG Picture Me 20 August - 13 September 2020
MARTIN BROWNE CONTEMPORARY 15 HAMPDEN STREET PADDINGTON NSW 2021 TEL: 02 9331 7997 FAX: 02 9331 7050 info@martinbrownecontemporary.com www.martinbrownecontemporary.com GALLERY HOURS: TUESDAY - SUNDAY 10:30AM - 6PM
Picture Me In her latest series Picture Me, Adrienne Doig repurposes tapestries she has found in op shops and on eBay, in the process unpicking a few of the more stubborn myths surrounding ‘women’s work’.These works, painstaking created by anonymous needleworkers, tend to depict cosy interiors and bucolic landscapes. Doig cross-stitch bombs them; an arresting, sock-footed figure foregrounded against an idyllic backdrop. The titles of the collection – Scenes 1-8 and Close Ups – acknowledge the staged quality of the work. A contemporary, theatrical presence, Doig’s primary-coloured interloper ‘occupies’ these found interiors. In Scene 3, a lounge room, the artist makes herself right at home, reclining on a chaise lounge – an exact leather replica of one the artist owns. The mantelpiece and bookshelves in Scene 6, a cabin fireside, are decorated with miniature versions of some of Doig’s favourite knick-knacks. In Scene 7, an attic sewing room, the artist is more of a disruptive presence (along with the outsized insects, a direct reference to a tradition in 17th Century English embroidery, which played with the scale of plants, animals and people.) Reimagining this bland, unoccupied space as her studio, Doig’s creative chaos upsets the order the work’s original creator is striving to impose. In so doing, Doig provokes an atavistic conversation about the unseen and undervalued nature of domestic industry. Amplifying the theme of self-portraiture that has been a constant throughout Doig’s career, tiny self-portraits hang on the wall of each of these interiors.An accompanying series of smaller, more self-reflective works – which nod to both The Lady and the Unicorn and Escher – zero in on the detail of Doig’s work.These Close Ups show the artist in the process of depicting herself – in fragments, since her perspective is necessarily limited. The instruments of Doig’s labour – pins, dressmaking scissors, an iron – feature prominently. Thematically, Picture Me couldn’t be more timely. “There’s been a real revival in the domestic industries as a result of COVID-19,” Doig acknowledges. “These works tap into the pleasure of being at home and making things.” Vicky Roach
LIST OF WORKS
Scene 1, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 59 x 94 cm Scene 2, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 57 x 88 cm Scene 3, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on petit point, 37 x 48 cm Scene 4, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 59 x 88 cm Scene 5, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on cross stitch, 53 x 46 cm Scene 6, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 46 x 56 cm Scene 7, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on cross stitch, 45 x 55 cm Scene 8, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on embroidery, 70 x 101 cm Close Up 1, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 35 x 51 cm Close Up 2, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 34.5 x 51 cm Close Up 3, 2020, fabric, embroidery ,applique and paint, 36.5 x 51 cm Close Up 4, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 35.5 x 51 cm Close Up 5, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 56 x 67 cm
Scene 1, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 59 x 94 cm
Scene 2, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 57 x 88 cm
Scene 3, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on petit point, 37 x 48 cm
Scene 4, 2020, embroidery,applique and paint on needlepoint, 59 x 88 cm
Scene 5, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on cross stitch, 53 x 46 cm
Scene 6, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on needlepoint, 46 x 56 cm
Scene 7, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on cross stitch, 45 x 55 cm
Scene 8, 2020, embroidery, applique and paint on embroidery, 70 x 101 cm
Close Up 1, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 35 x 51 cm
Close Up 2, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint , 34.5 x 51 cm
Close Up 3, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 36.5 x 51 cm
Close Up 4, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 35.5 x 51 cm
Close Up 5, 2020, fabric, embroidery, applique and paint, 56 x 67 cm