Sydney Contemporary 13

MICHAEL REID SY DNEY - BERLIN - MURRURUND I

MICHAEL REID SY DNEY - BERLIN - MURRURUND I

Sydney Contemporary 13 Joseph McGlennon Christopher Pease Joan Ross Christian Thompson Brian Robinson Danie Mellor 19th - 22nd September 2013

B103 Carriageworks 245 Wilson Street, Eveleigh (cnr Codrington St)

The Hangover - The consequences of colonial control The heavy consumptions of another’s imported culture has consequences, this is not a value judgement, it is an observation. The over-hang, the hangover, the headache, the hypersensitivity of our society to early colonialism continues to swirl and ripple with reactions. Our artists Danie Mellor, Joseph McGlennon, Christopher Pease, Brian Robinson, Christian Thompson and Joan Ross engage in this dialogue.

Joseph McGlennon Thylacine Study Number 3, 2013 giclee print on archival Hahnemuhle Fine Art Paper 140 x 168cm framed Edition of one “Hero� image Photographed on location in Van Diemans Land

Joseph McGlennon Kangaroo Study Number 3, 2010 giclee digital print on archival Hahnemule Fine Art paper 138 x 138 cm approx, framed Edition of one “Hero� image Photographed in St James Park, London, UK

Christopher Pease Down the Rabbit Hole II, 2013 oil on canvas 61.5 x 90.5cm Down the Rabbit Hole II takes its inspiration from an early first contact drawing by William Westall, mashed-up with John Tenniel’s illustration of the White Rabbit in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

by Lewis Carroll.

Below threatening grey clouds a Minang man of the Nyoongar nation stands proudly, gazing assuredly out of the canvas. Drawn in accordance with the neoclassical conventions of the time, his kangaroo skin or bwoka is transformed into soft cloth draped around his arms and he is adorned with possum fur armbands and an emu feather headdress.

Standing next to him the incongruous figure of the White Rabbit, in winged-collar, waistcoat and jacket and carrying an umbrella, consults his pocket watch. The illustration is taken from Chapter 1 of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in which Alice spots the White Rabbit going down a large rabbit-hole.

“In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again”.

The impossibility of Alice’s return to where she has come from or of the White Rabbit being able to turn back time on his pocket-watch mirrors how life for the Nyoongar people of Western Australia’s south-west changed irreversibly on first contact and after subsequent settlement.

As she falls, Alice reveals her ignorance about who and what she will find on the other side of the world, “I wonder if I shall fall right through the earth! How funny it’ll seem to come out among the people that walk with their heads downwards! The Antipathies, I think’….’but I shall have to ask them what the name of the country is, you know. Please Ma’am, is this New Zealand or Australia?”

In addition the White Rabbit is a direct reference to the introduction of a new, non-native species of animal and the creation of imbalance in nature.

Christian Thompson ‘Untitled #1’ 2010 King Billy series C-type print 100 x 100 cm Edition of 10

Christian Thompson ‘Untitled #2’ 2010 King Billy series C-type print 100 x 100 cm Edition of 10

Christian Thompson ‘Untitled #3’ 2010 King Billy series C-type print 100 x 100 cm Edition of 10

Joan Ross Butterfly murdering, 2013 Hand painted pigment print on cotton rag paper 90 x 91cm (image size) Edition of 3

Joan Ross Tag and capture, 2013 Hand painted pigment print on cotton rag paper 91 x 90cm (image size) Edition of 3

Joan Ross Touching other people’s butterflies, 2013 Digital animation 2 min 45 sec Edition of 6

Joan Ross Stop with fluoro, 2013 Hand painted pigment print on cotton rag paper 33.5 x 44.5cm (image size) Edition of 3

Joan Ross Northern Terrortory, 2008 Kangaroo fur, gold bollards, dimensions variable

Brian Robinson - Waiben (Thursday Island) Torres Strait Harvest season I, 2012 Linocut printed in black from one block Edition of 30 Image size: 51.5 x 79.5cm Paper size: 80 x 120cm Paper type: BFK Rives white 300 GSM Provenance Djumbunji Press, KickArts Contemporary Arts, Cairns, QLD, Cat #BRRO059

Brian Robinson - Waiben (Thursday Island) Torres Strait 3 fishermen and a Lamborghini, 2011 Linocut printed in black from one block Edition of 30 Image size: 40 x 88.5cm Paper size: 63.5 x 110cm Paper type: BFK Rives white 300 GSM Provenance Djumbunji Press, KickArts Contemporary Arts, Cairns, QLD, Cat #BRRO053

Danie Mellor New World, New Order (The Visitors), 2009 mixed media on paper 139.5 x 100.0 cm Provenance Jan Murphy Gallery, Brisbane Private collection, Brisbane Exhibited Tweed River Art Gallery, 7 May - 20 June 2010 Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, 7 October - 20 November 2011

Danie Mellor Kangaroo love and a moment of comfort, 2008 mixed media on paper 103.0 x 100.0 cm Provenance Caruana & Reid Fine Art, Sydney Private collection, New York, USA; purchased in 2008

For more information, please contact: Adam Sims 0421 283765 adamsims@michaelreid.com.au Nicola Townsend 0438 415672 nicolatownsend@michaelreid.com.au