ARTS ZINE DECEMBER 2018 by Robyn Werkhoven

s t u d i o

L A P R I M I T I V E

arts zine

special edition December 2018

JANE FRANCES REILLY “A house for you, a house for me” 2018. 310 x 260 mm.

https://dungogcontemporary.com.au/

E D M O N D T H O M M https://www.thommenart.com.au

E N

http://kathrinlonghurst.com/

LONGHURST Talk is Cheap, 90x90cm, oil on linen

KATHRIN

SPLITTING POD #11. cast glass, dimensions: 25.2 x36.5 x 25.5cm. Ann Robinson 1998.

gordon@theelliotteyescollection.com

THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION

DRIFT 201312, lambda metallic print face mounted plexiglass 30 x 30 x 4cm. Paul Snell 2013.

THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION

slp studio la primitive EDITOR: Robyn Stanton Werkhoven CONTRIBUTORS

George Gittoes

Lorraine Fildes

Gordon Elliott

Edmond Thommen

Col Henry

Robyn Werkhoven

Stephen Hobbs

Gallery 139

Maggie Hall

Art Systems Wickham

Bernadette Meyers

Back to Back Gallery

Natalie Duncan

Dungog by Design

Brad Evans

Dungog Contemporary

Eric Werkhoven

Timelesstextiles

INDEX Editorial …………

Robyn Werkhoven

SLP Antics………... …

E & R Werkhoven

Feature Artist …………

George Gittoes

12 - 39

Poetry …………………

Eric Werkhoven

34 - 35

Feature ……………..

Gordon Elliott

42 - 49

Feature Artist …………..

Col Henry

50 - 59

Poetry ………………….

Brad Evans

60 - 65

Feature Artist …………

Stephen Hobbs

66 - 81

The Politics of Art ………… Maggie Hall Venice’s Architecture …… Lorraine Fildes

WIN 2 FREE DOUBLE PASS

GIFT VOUCHERS

82 - 89 90 - 109

Feature Artist ……………. Bernadette Meyers

110 - 117

Feature Artist ……………

118 - 123

Natalie Duncan

ART NEWS…………….

124 - 139

TO VISIT THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION - see page 42. Above: FOLDED T-SHIRT COURAGE

Carara marble, Dimensions: 6 x 30 x 33cm. Alexander Seton 2009.

Maggie Hall, artist, writer and photographer features an essay on The Politics of Art.

EDITORIAL Greetings to all our ARTS ZINE readers, this is a SPECIAL EDITION Including an exclusive interview with Australia’s iconic artist and film maker George Gittoes, featuring his recent experiences and art from

Lorraine Fildes, our resident travel photographer and writer visits Venice capturing the magnificent architecture in timeless images.

South Chicago, USA. Elliott Eyes Collection have generously offered two double free passes to visit their wonderful art collection in Sydney…...don’t miss out entering the draw, winners announced in March Arts Zine 2019. See pages 42 - 49 for details. Australian sculptor Col Henry features his latest

public art project

Ceramic artist Natalie Duncan, writes about ‘Memory Jug Afghanistan’, her finalist entry in the Napier Waller Art Prize, the War Memorial, Canberra, ACT.

Don’t miss reading our new poetry, art news and information on forthcoming art exhibitions.

‘Turtle Dream,’ a growing and living, underwater sculpture at Langford

Reef, off

Hayman Island, QLD.

A work in progress, we see how

Henry’s six meter turtle is designed and constructed.

An in depth interview with photographer and gallerist Stephen Hobbs.

The ARTS ZINE features articles and interviews with national and international visual artists, poets and writers, exploring their world of art and creative processes. Submissions welcomed, we would love to have your words and art works in future editions in 2019.

Hobbs in 2017 opened a contemporary gallery, specialising in current and ‘cutting edge’ art. The gallery is located in Dungog, in the scenic rural Hunter Valley, NSW. Dungog is becoming a Mecca for modern art , with many artists establishing their homes and studios in the district.

Deadline for articles 15th February for March issue 29, 2019. Email: werkhovenr@bigpond.com Regards - your editor Robyn Werkhoven

Sydney artist & photographer Bernadette Meyers presents a delightful collection of images and story - An Afternoon with Elizabeth Rose. Issue 29 - December 2018

A N T I C S www.studiolaprimitive.net

This Means War Boys! Acrylic on board,120 x 90 cm. E&R Werkhoven

E & R

Issue 29 - December 2018 11

GEORGE GITTOES Issue 29 - December 2018

GEORGE GITTOES IN SOUTH CHICAGO, USA 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

GEORGE GITTOES George Gittoes is a celebrated Australian artist, an internationally acclaimed film producer, director and writer. In 1970 he was a co-founder of the Yellow House Artist Collective in Sydney. Gittoes is described as “simultaneously being a figurative painter, a modernist, a postmodernist, a social realist, a pop artist and an expressionist”. Gittoes’ work has consistently expressed his social, political and humanitarian concern and the effects of injustice and conflict. - "I believe there is a role for contemporary art to challenge, rather than entertain. My work is confronting humanity with the darker side of itself." Since 1986 he has travelled to many wore torn areas, including the Philippines, Somalia, Cambodia,

Rwanda, Bosnia,

Bougainville, and South Africa. In recent years his work has especially focused on the Middle East, with recurring visits to Israel and Palestine, Iraq, and Afghanistan. In 2011, he established a new Yellow House, a multi-arts and education centre in Jalalabad, the second largest city in Afghanistan. Gittoes has received many prestigious art awards including the Blake Prize for Religious Art (Twice) and Wynn Prize. His films have won many International Awards and can be accessed through SBS On Demand and in 2015 he was bestowed the Sydney Peace Prize. Page 12: Guns Kill: Headshot Final, Ink on paper, 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes © 2018. Page 14: George Gittoes working on mural in basement studio, South Chicago USA 2018. Issue 29 - December 2018

In 2018 Gittoes has been living and working in South Side, Chicago – or ‘Chiraq’ – shooting the feature documentary White Light. During this time Gittoes through drawing, painting, film making and writing reflects and tells the stories about his day to day experiences in a volatile,

and unpredictable environment,

fuelled by guns. The

paintings

and

drawings

the

KILL

KULTURE AMERIKA series were made in the basement of their 67th Street apartment, where he

also worked with 24-year-old graffiti artist

Darius Marcus Ford on the large murals, both works were a wonderful collaboration in what they call the Chicago Yellow House. Stencils and spray cans are the language of street art and have been incorporated into portraits of members of the Black Stone gang of May Block. Issue 29 - December 2018

G U N S K I L L

Yellow House.

urban graffiti artist

Darius Marcus Ford. A wonderful collaboration in what we call the Chicago

12 panel work KILL KULTURE AMERIKA , H15 x W 16 ft. In collaboration with 24 year old local

U L

U R E

M E

R I

Issue 29 - December 2018 18

SOAP MURDER - GEORGE GITTOES. I have been associating with May Block Chicago for almost a year. May Block refuse to call themselves a

gang and like the ‘n’ word refuse to use ‘gang’ in their vocabulary. In this time I have been closely observing everything about May Block’s lives and what motivates them. No one could say my insights are superficial.

The portraits I have made use spray paint in an urban style that fits May Block idea of how art should look. Once the subject sees the finished work they immediately photograph it onto their phones and it becomes a kind of ‘bling’ to boast about on social media. Each of the characters featured in the film refer to me as “my documentary film director” and they see our White Light documentary as a platform to elevate their lives and history above all the other gangs in Southside Chicago. May Block are black but identify themselves as American Indigenous Indian. The original owners of the land in Chicago region. That is such a big, other

story, I am going to have to find the funds to make a film about this lost and untold indigenous history.

MY CONCLUSION ABOUT THE GUN VIOLENCE WHICH HAS LEAD

TO THIS PLACE

BEING CALLED CHIRAQ – WITH MORE SHOOTINGS DAILY THAN ANY OTHER PLACE ON EARTH. Issue 29 - December 2018

Guns Kill: Albert Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

G U N S K I L L

Guns Kill: Father Phleger Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

ban graffiti artist Darius Marcus Ford. A wonderful collaboration in what we call the Chicago

12 Panel Painting Renaissance Park H16 x W 15 ft. . In collaboration with 24 year old local ur-

R E

N A

N C E

Issue 29 - December 2018 22

The main reason for the all the killings is the need to feed the ongoing soap opera broadcast onto smart phones through social media. May Block and other waring groups like them do not need wealth or possessions, a job, or even freedom to move, but take their phones away and they begin to scream . When in jail they are only allowed one phone call a week. They do not ring their mother or their girlfriend

but gang central in order to be brought up to date. These calls from jail are sacred and last 30 minutes with every gang member who is present adding colour and comment to feed the poor soul cut off from the action. The dramas in their combined lives provide compete immersive entertainment. There is nothing more involving than knowing they are perpetually at war and nothing better to keep them on the edge of their seats than knowing they or someone close to them could be killed. There is nothing more tragic than the news they have lost a brother or sister but this news also, visibly revitalises the whole group like something they feed on. Their lives made more real by the nearness of death. When someone is wounded or killed they are all energised and revenge becomes their reason for living. Souljah is the switchboard of the May Block gang, social network. Souljah spends all his time working social media and his phone. I sometimes wondered why his leadership goes unchallenged since he is paralysed in a wheelchair and unable to leave his apartment due to his house arrest ankle bracelet. But it is his mastery of social media and the telephone news desk that makes him indispensable to the running

of all their lives. Walking into Souljahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s apartment is like entering a TV studio and going live to air. Issue 29 - December 2018

Guns Kill: Headshot ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Whenever I walk into a room or meet up with anyone in the group I am immediately introduced via their phone and the camera is turned on me and I am asked to call out “MAY BLOCK” while simultaneously making a gesture of solidarity – the name of their gang is the flag and country they all must honour. Becoming a May Block regular has made me as much of a target as any of them. Wherever I go people, in

the street, call out “Hey George” – even people who I have never met, personally. They could only know me through my social media fame as a constant ‘new player’ in the ongoing saga of May Block. It is difficult to get Souljah’s attention away from the phone screen for more than 30 seconds. If friends visit with a new rap song they want him to listen to, he can not stay away from the screen long enough to hear it out – even if it is about him. If any of these guys took a job and were not allowed to be constantly monitoring their phones they would have to leave. It is better to remain unemployed than be cut off for hours at a time from ‘what is going on’. The group soap is more important than career, money, security or personal safety. At the moment, the war between them and rival gangs has reached such a peak they are all under selfimposed house arrest – none of them can walk out onto their beloved May Block or be seen anywhere in public, especially as a group. But they do not care about being locked up in dark, smoke filled apartment spaces because they have each other and the world of their tiny screens seems almost infinite. Plus they

constantly self- medicate any sense of depression away as they inhale their ‘wood’, marijuana. Issue 29 - December 2018

Guns Kill: Lil Mac Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

I have been chastised over and again for asking “Who are the bad guys you are waring with?” I am reprimanded and told “There are no good guys and no bad guys”. I have to understand that they are all players in a never ending cycle of revenge and retaliation and that those shooting them and who they are shooting back at are no more good or bad than they are.

Nothing made by the professional entertainment industry can compete with their own unfolding mini-series. They don’t watch movies or TV. Sometimes they will watch a sports game because, like their own social media, sport is unpredictable and unscripted – no one knows who will win or lose. They do have violent rap videos playing in the background but these are all very amateur and feature a lot of

guns and reinforce and justify their own lifestyle.

They can not make new friends because they are bonded as ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’ to everyone in their own gang. Everyone other than the gang is the enemy.

Besides, no one other than the gang could ever be trusted with the information they all have about the murders and other crimes they do. The gang can not allow new people in who could become snitches. There is nothing worse than a snitch and if someone snitches their life becomes worthless. I have to walk that tight rope, as well. Issue 29 - December 2018

When I interviewed Sherriff Tom Dart who runs all the correctional facilities in Chicago he blamed social media for the huge increase in gang related gun deaths. In the past, gangs could keep their locations and movements secret. Before social media it was often difficult to locate their rivals to be able to shoot them. Now they just have to scan the social networks and they can find their targets live streaming from the location they are in. What often triggers a deadly attack is a direct or perceived insult put out on social media. It is not like only a few people hear the insult - it can reach thousands, putting pressure on the ‘disrespected’ person to do something back. Often it is bullets in reply to negative words.

I was squeezed into the backseat of our car with Souljah’s girlfriend, Tia and two gangster boys, waiting for take-away meals – her boyfriend Souljah in the front. Tia is a beautiful soft personality – she loves and cares for Souljah as much as for her two year old baby boy. To my surprise she told me she was about to turn herself in to prison. I turned and asked her “How could someone as kind as you be going to jail?” Her answer was simple “I was in with bad people.” Suddenly the May Block guys transformed into the honourable providers of a sanctuary for Tia.

What I

realized in that car that night was that being with a gang is about protection. There is nothing more primal than finding safety in numbers, by belonging to a pack, a pod or a pride.

Issue 29 - December 2018

There are a few other two year old boys, as well as Tia’s, who are usually present at any gathering – not much more than babies and still wearing nappies but they already spend a large part of their time locked into phones with their tiny fingers working the touch screens even faster than their parents. They mainly play shooting games. The games have them operating an array of military weapons originally designed by the military/entertainment complex as training exercises to prepare soldiers for battle. These baby boys have their heads in Iraq fighting a digital war with machine guns blasting down alley ways in cyber zones, while their fathers handle real guns in the ultra-real ‘Chiraq’. I often wonder if the boys sense the adrenaline in the air as their fathers prepare to go out to what they call ‘the trenches’ and engage in real shootings.

When I made Rampage about twelve years ago there was a moment when Willie T passed a shiny chrome gun to his little boy, probably no more than three years old. Audiences were shocked by this image and, also, when Elliot Lovette said “I could use a gun before I could walk”. It is now 2018 and I find it even more frightening to see one of these, two year old boys, selecting automatic weapons and knowing how to load them. Their tiny eyes refuse to be distracted as they lock into a small screen and keep pressing the trigger as new enemies pop up constantly. As they start the ‘game’, there is always a real shooter sitting beside them giving them tips on how to ‘maximise the kill’ and get the highest number of enemy ‘bodies down’. From this age they are learning to be rewarded for killing.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Lil Dave - words Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Smiley is one of May Block’s Generals and at thirty nine he is an elder and wise mentor . I asked him about the influence of video games -

SMILEY: “The games that are out now are making our kids ready for war – you can pick any gun and they are all real service models – and it teaches them how to be a team player – teaches how to shoot – teaches you how to creep and crawl – it teaches them not to care about the next person. It is too easy to pull the trigger. For our kids the trenches are just outside their front door - so the game is a training manual for the next stage because after they play the game from the age of two they are going to want a gun. Once they get that gun they are going to want to shoot it. It is even easier to pull the trigger in real life than a video game – and once it starts it is addictive – it is a rush, it is a high that you will keep constantly wanting – so that is why there has been so many shootings because once you shoot your first gun or once you shoot your first person you are not going to care about shooting someone else or the next person or the next person or the next person – it be all instinct.”

Issue 29 - December 2018

G U N S K I L L

Lil Dave - Death Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

The most revered members of May Block are killers. There is nothing more rewarding and no greater reason for pride, than to be a proven serial killer. These killers are not seen as ‘sickos’ like the kind of serial killers of detective dramas on TV, but as heroic soldiers protecting the gang / family from their rivals. On a broad socio economic level – these groups do not need much more than their phones. With these

dramas going on they do not seem to notice that they are living in poverty and barely ever have any money. None of them are interested in politics or follow the news. They know Trump is president and that is about all. The local gang politics is all they need to know. When these young males are engrossed in something as real and interesting as this from birth it is hard for

them to concentrate on any other activity. My biggest problem with the film is keeping their attention away from their phone screens long enough to do an interview or follow through on an activity. The most important word to all of these guys is ‘respect’ and showing ‘disrespected’ to any of them is sufficient reason to get killed. I have to be constantly careful not to ‘disrespect’ anyone. For them, to be a player and to score points in this deadly soap opera is the only way to earn total respect. To fail and not score the next kill for the team is unthinkable. This extreme system of respect based on pride through violence is a product of the way American Society has undervalued and segregated African American and Indigenous Indian citizens since they arrived as slaves or had their lands stolen. Issue 29 - December 2018

Souljah, Love & Pain Ink on paper 124 x 94 cm. George Gittoes Â© Issue 29 - December 2018

M A Y

B L O C K Issue 29 - December 2018

M A Y

B L O C K Issue 29 - December 2018

From the day we moved into our Southside Chicago Apartment block, last January, I have not seen another white person in this segregated side of the city. Not one other white face in all the months we have been here. Until meeting the people of May Block I was not aware that many in this community who are black skinned are actually Indigenous and descendants of the original inhabitants forced onto reservations and off their tribal land. As an Australian I always believed that Martin Luther King must have been exaggerating when he said Chicago was more racist than anywhere he had experienced in the South. Now, after standing in Marquette Park, on the spot where white Chicagoans stoned King, I find it even harder to believe that things have

deteriorated so shockingly in the 50 years since his 1968 assassination. King’s non-violent ‘dream’ never came about and as a result of America’s failure these deadly shootings are claiming more black lives, every day. The white community of Chicago, living outside the segregated areas can justify never going past the

invisible boundary that separates because they can honestly say it is too dangerous – they could be killed. I experienced all the inhumanity of Apartheid in South Africa before Mandela was elected but the division of black and white was never as extreme as Chicago and it is the constant news of this violence that works to keep it that way.

http://gittoes.com/

Issue 29 - December 2018

SHOT BY AN ARROW

E R I

There are so many Absolutes, that we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to recognise, only merrily hint at. As in mounting up into a city skyscape, lumbering under the weight as to retain its presence of its chieftains and its followers.

W E R K H

To maintain these links and still walk that distance up the hill and meditate on the crest, on the inability to wipe away these arthritic symptoms, take the lift, take the car mentality.

Strike a match to light a candle for Western culture. Awake to the insistent call, to march alongside these many Absolutes. We will blindfolded, follow you anywhere (for a while at least) you are this friend, a lover, a fiend, an adversary.

As on a raised platform, and the ground itself shimmering, booted down, recoiling from

standing up again, in your hand is a stick and you draw on that surface all these mirrored

reactions, these internalised gesticulations of rapturous flight.

- Eric Werkhoven ÂŠ 2018 Issue 29 - December 2018

R I

Shot by an Arrow, E&R Werkhoven. wwwstudiolaprimitive.net

Issue 29 - December 2018 41

Issue 29 - December 2018 42

THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION

WIN 2 FREE DOUBLE PASS GIFT VOUCHERS TO VISIT THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION The ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION is giving two lucky readers two FREE gift vouchers to visit their art collection. All you have to do is email Gordon to register for the vouchers and two people will be selected and sent their gift vouchers to redeem at a convenient time during 2019.

To enter the draw email your name to : gordon@theelliotteyescollection.com Just put ART ZINE GIFT VOUCHER ENTRY in the subject line. Winners will be announced in the next STUDIO LA PRIMITIVE ARTS ZINE.

You can read the article on the ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION using the following link : https://issuu.com/robynwerkhoven/docs/arts_zine_september_2017

Good luck and let your friends know about this free offer. Page 42: COMPRESSION MATTER II, acrylic high load pigment on canvas, H 76.2 x W 63.5cm. Mark Whalen 2017. Issue 29 - December 2018

THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION

gordon@theelliotteyescollection.com

AND THEN HE FLEW, acrylic, chalk and charcoal on paper, H 57 x W 76cm. Todd Fuller 2017. Issue 29 - December 2018

ABOUT THE ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION The ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION is based in Erskineville, Sydney and has grown out of a love of art and a 21 year journey of discovering both new and established artists. The owners of the collection, Gordon and Michael live daily with their art and it surrounds them in all rooms as well as outside. It comprises of paintings, drawings, glass art, sculpture, ceramics, photography and digital art.

Their home and collection have been open to the public for almost two years and has been well visited during that time. There are always new works to be seen, as the collection continues to grow as well as regular rehanging of the works. Once wall space was almost exhausted, sculpture took a hold in the

collection as it can be placed around the home. Now both the front and backyard space have their own artworks on show.

Issue 29 - December 2018

BEDROOM WITH PINK FLOOR, oil on canvas, H 38 x W 51cm. Euan MaCleod 2005. Issue 29 - December 2018

SEPTEMBER POOL, oil on linen, H 87 x W 69cm. Clara Adolphs 2016.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Left: LOUNGEROOM January 2018 with Jess Johnsons.

Right: FALL FROM GRACE. 2.4x2.0x1.8m. Adam Stone. Issue 29 - December 2018

Collecting art is a journey of discovery and as each artist is added to the collection further research goes into their art practice. The collection holds more established artist like Robert Dickerson, Sidney Nolan, Rick Amor and Euan Macleod as well as mid-career artist such as Michael Zavros, Alexander Seton and Peter Churcher alongside young emerging artists like Adam Stone, Clara Adolphs and Kevin McKay. Travel has

also played a part in the art collection with works from overseas by Dale Chihuly (USA), Norbert Bisky (Germany), Antony Gormley (UK) and Hylton Nel (SA). Michael is from New Zealand originally so there is an affinity with artists from across the Tasman such as Terry Stringer, Gregor Kregar and Ann Robinson. All of which are on show at your visit to their collection.

For further information on the ELLIOTT EYES COLLECTION or to make a booking visit the website :

www.theelliotteyescollection.com Gift vouchers are also available and make a perfect “Xmas Art” present.

TURTLE DREAM C

Y Issue 29 - December 2018

COL HENRY - SCULPTOR Col Henry has made a significant contribution to Contemporary Australian Art. He is known as an innovator, enjoying the complexity of designing, developing many new methods and

techniques to create his diverse body of works. Henry has practiced sculpture for over 40 years, promoting sculpture in many ways including, teaching in his studio for over 25 years, supporting community groups to gain an acceptance of the art form and mentoring emerging artists. ‘Henry’s works include primal totems and monumental columns, devotional objects, sea creatures and seedpods, the movements of water and wind, archaic instruments, features of the landscape, and the human form’. He is represented by several Public Sculptures and countless Private Collections in Australia and overseas. Over the past 30 years he has been commissioned many times to place Sculpture and Sculptural Features in Public areas. In 2011 Col Henry was awarded Winner of the Gold Coast Council Acquisitive Prize - Swell Sculpture Exhibition. His sculpture “The Gathering” was installed on Currumbin Beach during the Swell Sculpture Festival.

https://www.colhenryart.net/ Issue 29 - December 2018

TURTLE DREAM - A GROWING and LIVING, UNDERWATER SCULPTURE. COL HENRY

WORK IN PROGRESS The work will be a symbolic, but quite realistic representation of the ‘HAWKSBILL SEA TURTLE’, an endangered species, and one of the six to seven varieties of Turtle that can frequent the Whitsundays. The work will describe a turtle rising from the sea bed, swimming away to its next ‘DREAM’ location. It will be approx. 6 meters wide at the front flipper extremities. And 6 meters long from beak to tail. The work will be fabricated from high quality stainless steel, and engineered to withstand the forces of nature that may try to ‘bother’ the Turtle. Hand formed from over 400 sections to create a ‘faceted’ surface that will be unique and robust, and an awe inspiring vision from underwater. The methodology requires high skill in many areas to finally realise this great work of ‘Underwater Sculpture’.

Issue 29 - December 2018

The ‘Carapace’ ( shell ) has 13 Scutum, and each Scute has several facets or sections created from hand formed stainless steel, designed to overlap the next section, creating a small gap big enough to allow marine growth and corals to attach firmly to the work. A 3 point footing system will be installed under water at Langford Reef, of Hayman Island, QLD. The work will stand up to approx. 3 meters off the sea bed, and at low tide would have approx. 2 meters of water over the work. The design expects unpredictable marine growth and potentially coral seeding by Scientists, and will be highly interactive, offering a surreal experience, especially diving or snorkeling around or under the work,

and a memorable viewing from above and below the water surface. The work is designed like an upturned Soup Bowl with flippers and a head. The open underbelly and topside surfaces will becoming a sanctuary, growing unpredictably with marine flora and become a haven for marine fauna species, in particular, the Artists expects, Coral Trout, who

love to lay in wait for their prey under large ‘Plate Corals’. The work is part of a $700k project that will see 6 underwater sculpture installed mid 2019, with a high priority research project running in conjunction, focusing on restoration of the reef environs after the devastation of cyclone ‘Debbie’ in 2016 and other damaging escalating events. - Col Henry © 2018. Issue 29 - December 2018

Issue 29 - December 2018

Col Henry is passionate about the health of the oceans, and In particular spent four years cruising over a forty year period, with his family in the Whitsundays, seeing a decline in the quality and diversity of the fringing reefs over that period. Tourism is a massive draw card for the Whitsundays, and this whole project is really about restoration and education for the broader public to gain an understanding of the potential risks becoming apparent with a result of the decline of a ‘wonder’ that can be seen from outer space – The Great Barrier Reef. The images included, show how the Artist, after visiting a ‘Turtle Hospital’ in Airlie Beach, and researching in depth, the brief, had to firstly create a 1:10 scale version, approx. 600 mm long, in fiber glass to understand

the complexities of the very organic form of a Turtle. Then a 1:2.5 version, about 1.5 meters long, was created from 1.6 mm thick stainless steel, to technically understand the many various tapered, twisted and hand formed sections that would be required to make the much larger 1:1 version from stainless steel ranging from 3 mm to 6 mm thick material.

The final work is expected to weigh well over 1 ton and will require at least 10 tons of footings, that will be hand shaped by the Artist to replicate actual ‘Coral Bombies’ but being made from concrete, a perfect medium for more marine growth.

B R A D

The Minotaur Lost within labyrinthine walls, I walk through hospital corridors to seek my destination, Wandering past the tired faces of old and young alike: Some in uniform and some not. Each hungry for relief within their own boxed-in lives: prescribed and non-prescribed. Those pharmaceutical delights to kill boredom or, more importantly, suffering:

E V A N S

Those costly varieties of relief that are so diversely spectacular..

After asking half a dozen staff I finally reach my destination & stand in the queue And await a staff member from within the dispensary. As I wait,

I look through the tiny slit of a window just above the counter and watch the overworked: a skeleton crew of weekend staff some staring into bile-green monitors some ticking registers, checking pills within boxes, boxes within pills and then re-checking them.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Each mind-numbing task worked through at a snail's pace with precision

I look nearer to its foreground colleagues

and accuracy,

I wait patiently to be served,

While,

and while I wait

Convinced that I am now seeing ghosts,

Locked away near the back of the dispensary, My eyes are drawn to movement kept behind a glassed-in room

I am granted an opportunity

Movement: non-human, jerk-swift & precise.

for one final moment

It disappears from view and there it is once more: Just an arm, flashing its chrome, under the cold tubes of led lighting. Not thinking of toothache or a meal break or a poorly child, Nor the lingering glance from a nurse in uniform something to make one's heart jump a-while nothing but a single arm of chrome, its pneumatic whirr echoing a movement so swift-efficient & lethal, its precision clutches:

to take a look, once more, at those tired faces,

faces that belong to a dying race.

- Brad Evans ÂŠ 2018.

retrieving, dropping, inserting, withdrawing, spinning, backwards & forwards tireless, unceasing, relentless...

Issue 29 - December 2018

B R A D

late night safety test and sent in a 23 year old fireman, Vladimir Pravik they were picking mushrooms when it went up.

along with 27 others

to tackle Although the heat fell off the scales in No.4

a meltdown.

the vertical trajectory did not hold true to Condy’s:

heat-tossed fission materials and graphite went stratospheric with updrafts lasting 9 days.

With wet-lipped pleasure

the media reported that Pravik was to be posthumously awarded an: “Order for Courage” -

It was just an accident, really, following a late night safety test…

They evacuated the city 30 hours later

a small star that looked like gold

from a distance.

E V A N S

Issue 29 - December 2018

Casting Shadows, frame from looped video installation - Concerning Peace Exhibition, Carolyn McKay ÂŠ 2018.

*Condy's Crystals (Potassium permanganate) was a chemical compound used in my science class for demonstrating convection currents. After a glass beaker was filled with water, a small amount of these crystals was placed into the bottom, heat was then applied using a Bunsen burner to illustrate the way convection worked. If placed directly in the centre of the beaker, often the appearance of the dissolving crystals would resemble a mushroom-shaped cloud.

Issue 29 - December 2018

conversation with a vending machine for struggling young mothers and the elderly... by mid-autumn he’d singled ‘her’ out and with a voice nearing murmurous, gets on with his life story.

The café closed down last summer, wasn’t even breaking even they said

Talking to ‘her’ usually starts with early interests:

so the builders moved in to break it up.

childhood pastimes,

cricket - a popular topic!

Away went the service counter,

He has just enough volume so that he can be heard

the glass display cabinet, a dishwasher, sink & the chrome-coloured refrigeration units refrigeration units - once opened by cafe staff -

over the steady hum of the energy-efficient, electric motor…

staff who, although often very busy, could still manage a smile

convenient

central

a popular place for those subsisting,

affordable

and hold a little conversation for the lonely.

B R A D

on 5pm and being told that a colleague had committed suicide earlier that day

What first greeted me upon entering that room were the sad, quiet faces as we all sat around the table.

E V A N S

Thinking of her, wondering why and what happened and some of it came out later. But what was also on my thoughts was finding out how management had known about it all day long as they readily pursued their disturbing calculation In getting a full dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work out of us before breaking the news. Issue 29 - December 2018

STEPHEN HOBBS

Issue 29 - December 2018

STEPHEN HOBBS Fine Art Photographer and Gallerist. Stephen is an Art Gallerist also specialising in precision document photography for artists, galleries,

designers

and

small

business.

Operating Dungog Contemporary, a gallery in the Hunter Valley with partner Sarah Crawford, aiming at bringing big city contemporary to the

country. A lifetime of experience working in studios and galleries. Stephen learned to light and to develop and print photographs traditionally before witnessing the whole shift to digital

media. Stephen now spends his time making fine art photographs that examine man's fragile relationship with the environment and works that explore pure composition for it's own sake. Page 66: Shore Break #1, Treachery, Archival pigment print on cotton rag

paper, 1130 x 1130 mm. ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

Stephen Hobbs Issue 29 - December 2018

Greek Revival Staircase Elizabeth Bay House Archival pigment print on cotton rag paper 520 x 520 mm

ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

Issue 29 - December 2018

STEPHEN HOBBS The first thing I would like to say as a gallerist and curator, albeit a pretty new one on the block, is that getting to see big, beautifully curated shows is not only uplifting, inspiring, exciting and fun, but it kind of tunes the eye and sharpens things

up! I feel better when I look at art, the works, the hang, the lighting. They are the best university in the world those big galleries that can do things on a really grand scale. Looking at the way shows are put together has always fascinated me.

I have been fortunate to have been around art, artists and a whole swag of pretty interesting people over my entire life.

Born into an artistic family, my father was a frustrated painter who worked as a commercial artist in advertising, my mother was a film set designer who later went on to become a legendary figure in the Australian hospitality industry. Family friends were photographers, sound engineers, painters, sculptors, film critics, cinematographers, journalists, chefs, advertising guruâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, antique dealers even the odd clever accountant and lawyer! Life was never boring as a child, I grew up on the floor of a photographic studio and some of my earliest memories are being lifted up to look through the back of a huge old 10 x 8 view camera with a black cloth over my head and twirling the focus knob, wondering why everything was upside down. My parents and their friends were a bit wild & there are some funny memories of the 1960â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s & 70â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s there, I could tell a lot of stories, that should remain closed! Issue 29 - December 2018

Interior Vaucluse House Archival pigment print on cotton rag paper 520 x 520 mm

ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

Issue 29 - December 2018

As a child I can remember countless trips to The Art Gallery of New South Wales with my father to look at that enormous painting of Napoleon. I much preferred the Whiteley in the modern section and that became quite a bone of contention between he and I. He knew a lot about the technicalities of painting though and taught me art history, he took me to the Uffizi in Florence, showed me the Trevi Fountain, he trawled me through endless churches in Venice. Back home he took me en plein air painting and taught me all about Roberts and McCubbin. With Dad art finished in about 1890! My mother was far more adventurous in her taste and I can recall wonderful openings at The Bonython Gallery in Sydney, seeing really way out conceptual work and watching adults having serious animated conversations that became at times quite scary! At this time I realised that art was more than oil paintings in gilt frames behind ropes. It would have been about then at age ten, I decided the corporate world was not for me. It was also at this period of my life that my mother Trish took me to the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, it was 1976 and I walked into a space where the enormous paper cut outs of Henri Matisse were hanging. This was the real thing, the first time I saw a work of art that literally blew my mind! (and I have tears in my eyes at this memory). Later that afternoon we went to a beautiful art supply shop in Les Halles, for me that day was the beginning of a lifelong love affair with art. At school we had a wonderful art department in which those of us who werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t rugby inclined could go and paint, weld and throw pots. It was also a hotbed of surfboard design for us arty types, boards were shaped and glassed, super eight films shot screened and we had an endless supply of paint, canvases and gesso, what a great school Cranbrook was then! The

art department was a legacy of the late great Justin Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Brien. Issue 29 - December 2018

Greek Revival Interior Detail Art Gallery of NSW. Archival pigment print on cotton rag paper 520 x 520 mm

ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

Issue 29 - December 2018

Later several of us went on to East Sydney Technical College to study art. Friendships and connections to The National Art School still remain and it is an institution I would like to tie closely to Dungog Contemporary Gallery. A gallery space for great young emerging artists to be able to have their work curated beautifully and to have the kind of support normally only available to very few, without stylistic demands or exclusivity contracts being made by a gallery to an emerging artist, my pet hate! The eighties were amazing in Sydney, friendships forged at Punk Rock gigs at The Trade Union Club, The Sussex Hotel and crazy weekly parties at the artist studio building in Pitt St, the evolution of The Gunnery from a squat to Art Space. So

much stuff & so many people who have gone on to be very important figures in the Australian art scene today.

Attending East Sydney was part of my education. I worked for many years in one of Sydneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best stills photographic studioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, graduating from sweeping the floor and painting the psych to making the tea and eventually loading very

expensive sheet film, and developing and printing and setting up studio lighting. We had great clients such as Vogue & Mercedes Benz. At night I used to ride my Lambretta over to Kingsford and develop and print black and white wedding photos for a Greek wedding photographer.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Dusk #1 Dungog Common Archival pigment print on cotton rag paper 1130 x 1130 mm

ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

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At this stage of my life I learnt the theory of photography, I assisted David Mist who was prolific, he was Cecil Beaton’s assistant in the late 40’s and trained in the RAF photographic unit. David called everyone “chap” and in the studio he was very strict with “cockpit drill.” The studio was in Nickson St, Surry Hills just around the corner from Ray Hughes Gallery, so many lunchtime visits to some great shows back then! Camera’s were always zeroed after use, multiple light readings used, equipment spotlessly maintained, every shot bracketed. David was very economical with film and always got shots perfect in camera, he is a perfectionist. Whenever I take a shot, I always go through the full “cockpit drill” to this day, thank you David Mist & David Roache, Studio Ten. At the studio we also shot a lot of document work for contemporary galleries and artists, David Roache is to this day the photographer to White Rabbit Gallery. I was incredibly privileged to learn from so many amazing professional people at that time. Then digital happened, the studio almost finished overnight, the quality of commercial photography has never been the same since. Stunning photography still happens, very beautiful work, though it is in the realm of fine art, the great creative school in advertising is finished. At this stage of my life I ended up in London after a protracted adventure in the Greek Islands with two Nikko mats and thirty rolls of film. One camera was used to clobber a rabid dog and it still worked! Unlike the dog. With no money in my pocket I arrived on the Kings Road, Chelsea and scored a job in a really famous antique shop. It was a crazy gig I looked after seven dealers “pitches” they sent furniture, I curated it into displays and learnt the art of negotiation and sale of antiques and fine art. Returning to Sydney I freelanced around the antique and interior decoration world. I worked for Ros Palmer, a genius and very chic transsexual antique dealer and decorator, who taught me how to hang pictures, curtains, pelmets, wallpaper and to paint and gild, at the time my hero was the legendary English decorator John Fowler and this

classical education was totally absorbing. Issue 29 - December 2018

Night #1 Sydney Harbor Archival pigment print on cotton rag paper 1130 x 1130 mm

ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

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John Normyle another very different antique dealer was a huge influence and a great friend. At the height of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Colefax & Fowlerâ&#x20AC;? look, he changed my outlook. John was dealing in Amphorae and 15th century Spanish farmhouse doors, millstones and agricultural implements, it was antique objects valued for their sculptural qualities, practically went out the window! The displays we curated in his minimal white space in William Street, Paddington were some of the most ground breaking interior decor work yet seen in Australia, John is now an award winning building designer. His wife at the time Allison Coates was florist extraordinaire and I also had the privilege of assisting her decorating some amazing spaces such as

Rose Bay Convent with displays of natives in arrangements that were punk beyond belief at the time, Allison now has a hugely successful sculptural practice.

Moving on, after all that experience I spent some years restoring English & French antiques, mainly conserving. Careful

cleaning, repairs etc. I even got paid to go to France and buy antiques for private clients which was amazing! Great restaurants, parties at some amazing apartments in Paris, I literally lived the dream. Until the Global Financial Crisis.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Amelia Vivash fatty acids 666

Creator Incubator, Braddon Snape & Sally McDonald

at Dungog Contemporary 2018, ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs

at Dungog Contemporary 2018, ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs. Issue 29 - December 2018

Finding myself unemployed, I moved to Angourie on the north coast for a while to go surfing and decide what to do next (surfing is very good for the brain!). Whilst there I enrolled in a course in museum sciences and did some install work at Grafton Regional Gallery. I decided the Contemporary Art World was for me! So I had to formulate a plan. This was about the time I fell in love with Dungog from train trips through the Upper Hunter. Upon returning to Sydney I worked at an advertising agency as a social media consultant & did freelance document photography for artists and fine art dealers. I then met Sarah Crawford who happened to be from Dungog and we fell head over heels in love. The first time we met, she was supposed to be interviewing me for a position, I never got the position because all we spoke about was the concept of opening a really great contemporary gallery in a rural town, We now have the gallery!

All of that experience gave me the idea that the perfect thing I can do is facilitate a gallery. We love showing exciting young artists and taking risks. We will hang a minimal show of an unknown & unrepresented artist because we love their work and we believe in them. In saying that, we recently had a midcareer artist show and we significantly raised the price of their work. We are not in this for the money, you just canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be. We have some exciting projects coming up, some really big ideas. All I can say to all the young artists out there is to stop signing contracts with trendy unscrupulous dealers in Sydney. Your work needs to be seen, it needs to be seen by as many people as possible. Our mission is to get emerging and midcareer artists work into good collections and to collaborate. Have a very Merry Xmas and we hope to see you in 2019 which is shaping up to be a great year for Dungog Contemporary.

- Stephen Hobbs ÂŠ 2018.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Peter Lankas & Jake Clark

Peter Lankas

at Dungog Contemporary 2018, ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs.

at Dungog Contemporary 2018, ÂŠ Stephen Hobbs Issue 29 - December 2018

THE POLITICS OF ART

MAGGIE HALL Issue 29 - December 2018

The Politics of Art Maggie Hall

Internet surfing through mountainous peaks of exquisite art, hidden masterpieces pixelated to perfection tease recognition from those who would, never in a lifetime be able to achieve such natural talent or strength. We, as a community, and people, must recognise the great opportunities that our current technological advances allow. No longer do you need great sums of money, or financial support through patrons and grants. Pandoraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Box is open, and we are afraid to be exposed as fake, fraudulent or worse, mediocre. Friend suggestions and potential mates, like or dislike, it is a time of change, that which happens once in a century. A modern day Colosseum where, in place of wild animals are artisan, media hounds, and false governance. In this present state of play, societies bond and form all depending, on who you are, and what you bring to the boarded palette, ready made by wheel of stone, spun by those who shape the wet clay into non-existent

legacy. Issue 29 - December 2018

Issue 29 - December 2018

The search for fame, fortune, and the holy grail of notion. Blessed with t he golden ticket via, family, religion, and the permission to create at your will, as long as you follow the rules. Born into, or married into, the inner sanctum, High Art, this is where ambition overrides ability. A metallic taste permeates my mouth, the blood blister on my tongue has burst, pressure explodes poison down into the hollow organs, music cathedrals through my body and I become numb. Is this my last breath, my final sentence.

Art is, will always be, the bloodline of necessities, madness, and unquenchable passion, that which one cannot live without. I have seen great people of incredible talent overlooked, blacklisted because of their ability. Competition is squashed before roots reach the rich soil. Best of Show & Strictly Ballroom, not that funny when it all becomes so real.

No religion, no politics, an untameable fool . . . I pull the wild card, a Joker, he does a dance before my eyes turning to take a bow towards the audience in my mind. Issue 29 - December 2018

Issue 29 - December 2018

Persecution, bullying, threats, and assassinations have always been, and will continue, if peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fear of standing up for what is right and just continues to be. Ants get eaten or killed if they do not conform to the roles they were born to play, are we any different . . . What do you stand for, where do your morals lay . . . Are you afraid of the big bad wolf, or will you face the winds and abandon all fear. Power and blind ambition work through a flame cast by dictators and fear mongers, those who need control to feel secure and safe. At what cost . . . It is not about right or wrong, in this life our last moments of existence are judged by our actions, who, and what we stand for. The weight of your heart should be equal to the feather of ascension, if not, you may be living this life again. The last moment, a breath before the seven seconds, a journey of the soul into the next body.

Issue 29 - December 2018

The art that shapes you evolves into a masterpiece, never forgotten, a memory of energy that never leaves this place we call home. If we choose to stand together for sense of peace, harmony, and justice, anything is possible. Our DNA is shared, no matter what colour or race, what society or wealth. There is no room for competition or war between people, when in essence, we all stand for the same thing. To be loved, accepted, honoured and acknowledged, all with dignity and respect. Through art and words we can cross barriers and reach borders which canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be touched in any other way. Working together to find peace and self-worth through the recognition of self and others. We are all fighting the same war. Existence.

VENICEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ARCHITECTURE

LORRAINE FILDES Issue 29 - December 2018

Venice's Architecture - Lorraine Fildes Headlines around the world - Venice Flooding Is Worst in a Decade - (October/November 2018) Venice, is built on a series of six islands at the edge of the Adriatic Sea on Italy’s north-eastern coast. The streets of Venice are waterways, canals, making boats the official transportation choice. Venice has always been vulnerable to flooding, but global warming is causing sea levels

to rise and thus making matters worse. Venice not only has to contend with the rising sea levels but the land itself is sinking. Special flood gates have been under construction for the past decade, but due to corrupt politicians and developers much of the money has been siphoned off and the flood gates are not ready. I was amazed to read this, to think that people could risk putting such a magnificent city in jeopardy for personal greed. Engineers are now hopeful that the gates will become fully operational by the year 2020.

Besides flooding Venice also has the problem of many very large cruise ships sailing up the Guidecca Canal. This route takes you within just 300 m of Piazza San Marco (St Mark’s Square). Unfortunately the damage caused by these ships water displacement and the marine diesel engine exhaust pollution is badly damaging the buildings of Venice. As from 2021 ships larger than 55,000 tons will not be allowed to sail up the Guidecca Canal. See the photos I took while cruising up the Guidecca Canal, this may be a wonderful experience for the traveller but the resulting damage to the buildings of Venice cannot be allowed to continue.

After looking at the flooded buildings on the television and in the newspapers I looked back at the photos that I had taken on my visits to Venice. What superb architecture - what an amazing city. My photos are of the architecture, external structure of the churches and buildings on the canals. Of course in the churches and museums are magnificent, paintings, frescoes, mosaics and sculptures by well known artists such as Giovanni Bellini (c. 1430–1516), Canaletto (1697–1768), Giorgione (c. 1477/8–1510), Andrea Mantegna (1431–1506), Jacopo Tintoretto (1518– 1594), Titian (c.1488/90–1576) and Paolo Veronese (1528–1588), just to mention a few.

Issue 29 - December 2018

D O G Eâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; S P A L A C E

Issue 29 - December 2018

Doges Palace,

This photo which shows the Doges Palace, three domes of St Mark's Basilica, Piazza San Marco, Campanile of St Mark's church (brown brick tower with copper witchesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; hat), the Loggetta del Sansovino (the small columned building facing the

Dogesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Palace, was taken as our ship sailed up the Giudecca Canal.

The Doge's Palace is built in Venetian Gothic style, and is one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice. The palace was originally built In 810 as the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme authority of the former Venetian Republic. The palace was destroyed by fire in the 10th century. A new palace was reconstructed on the site. Some Byzantine characteristics can still be seen such as the wall base which is made from Istrian stone. (A dense, impermeable limestone that was quarried in Istria.)

In 1483, much of the building was destroyed by fire and once again reconstructed introducing Renaissance architecture. Throughout the 16th century there were several fires resulting in restructuring and embellishments. In its successive re-buildings, the palace incorporated characteristics of Gothic, Moorish, and Renaissance architecture. the Italian government took ownership of the building in the 19th century and in 1923 the Venetian municipality opened it as a museum.

Issue 29 - December 2018

S T M A R Kâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; S B A S

I L I C

A Issue 29 - December 2018

St Mark's Basilica St Mark's Basilica is the most famous of the many churches of Venice and one of the finest examples of Byzantine

architecture in the world. It is located just off the Grand Canal behind the Doges Palace. St Mark's is a cathedral. Originally it was the Doge's chapel until it became the seat of the Archbishop of Venice in 1807.

In 828, Venetian merchants stole the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist from their original resting place in Alexandria, Egypt. A special chapel was built to house the relics in 829-32. This chapel was badly damaged by fire in 976, but was restored by 1071.

The basic structure of the building has changed very little but its decoration was regularly modified after its completion. Venetian vessels from the Orient brought a supply of columns, capitals, and friezes from ancient buildings to adorn the basilica. The exterior brickwork was covered with various marbles and carvings, some much older than the building itself.

Across the Piazza in front of the church are three large mast-like flagpoles (the lower half of two are shown in the photo) with bronze bases decorated in high relief by Alessandro Leopardi in 1505. The Venetian flag of St Mark used to fly from them in the time of the republic of Venice and now shares them with the Italian flag.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Santa Maria della Salute Issue 29 - December 2018

Santa Maria della Salute

Santa Maria della Salute (English: Saint Mary of Health), is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica located on the narrow finger of Punta della Dogana, between the Grand Canal and the Giudecca Canal â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from which this photo was taken. The domes dominate the Venice landscape.

The Salute is the most recent of the so-called plague churches. In 1630, Venice experienced an unusually devastating outbreak of the plague. As a votive offering for the city's deliverance from the pestilence, the Republic of Venice built and dedicated this church to Our Lady of Health (or of Deliverance).

The church was designed in the baroque style by Baldassare Longhena, who studied under the architect Vincenzo Scamozzi. Construction began in 1631. The dome of the Salute soon became emblematic of the city, inspiring artists like

Canaletto, J. M. W. Turner and John Singer Sargent.

Issue 29 - December 2018

This photo is taken from the balcony of the hotel we stayed at in Venice. The waterway is the Grand Canal, the bridge people are crossing is the Ponte degli Scalzi and the columned building with the green roof to the right of the bridge is the San Simeone Piccolo Church.

More motor boats whizz around the canals than gondolas nowadays.

Issue 29 - December 2018

The church of San Simeon Piccolo was built in 1718 -38 and consecrated in 1738 (a previous one existed here in the 9th century). Architect Scalfarotto was allegedly inspired by the sumptuous Salute church and by the Roman Pantheon. The church features a huge dome and a Neoclassical faรงade. This faรงade features a pediment which consists of a gable of a triangular shape and horizontal mouldings and bands, all of which are supported by columns. The

tympanum, the triangular area within the pediment, is decorated with a religious relief sculpture.

San Simeone Piccolo (small) church is so-called in order to distinguish it from San Simeone Grande (big) church, not far from it. Those adjectives were referring to the size of the two parishes not the churches themselves, since San Simeone Piccolo of Venice is actually bigger than the other.

Issue 29 - December 2018

Santa Maria del Rosario is an 18th-century Dominican church on the Giudecca Canal in Venice. Construction of the church began in 1725 and the church was completed and consecrated in 1743.

Giorgio Massari was the architect who designed this impressive church. The facade is decorated with statues representing the four virtues. Also the fa-

รงade has a central triangular pediment which sits on mouldings and bands which lie horizontally above four columns.

It has been suggested that there are some Turkish influences in the exterior, particularly the two campaniles which resemble minarets.

Santa Maria del Rosario

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L A P I E T A

C H U R C

H The La Pieta church was designed by Giorgio Massari to double as a concert hall, with Vivaldi offering hints on how to perfect its acoustics. The present church was built from 1745-1760 adjacent to the site of an earlier church. The faรงade remained incomplete, until 1906, when it was completed but without the originally projected three statues on the roof. Only a single simple cross ornaments the centre. Above the entrance is a large bas-relief representing Charity (1800) by Marsili. Issue 29 - December 2018

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When you see this façade you immediately think it is a church entrance and are surprised to discover that the elaborate and beautiful façade is actually the principal entrance of St. John and Paul Civil Hospital.

The beautiful marble facade was designed and built by Pietro Lombardo and Giovanni Buora. They included statues from the older building which had been destroyed by ﬁre. In 1494, the facade was completed by Mauro Coducci, who added the characteristic superior arches.

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San Giorgio Maggiore is a 16th-century Benedictine church on the island of the same name in Venice, designed by Andrea Palladio, and built

between 1566 and 1610.

The church is a basilica in the classical Renaissance style and its brilliant white marble gleams above the blue water of the lagoon.

The church features a large dome topped with a sculpture and a Neoclassical faรงade. This faรงade features two triangular gables, the upper one is supported by four columns. There are three statues on the upper gable roof and two statues on

the lower gable roof.

A red brick campanile topped with a pointed copper roof, stands to the left of the basilica .

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T H E S A

I N T M I C H E L E C H U R C H Issue 29 - December 2018

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The San Michele church and the San Cristoforo chapel.

The island of San Michele, located in the lagoon close to Venice, has been the city's cemetery since the early nineteenth century. It is dedicated to the dead, and is occupied by two churches and many tombstones.

The two churches on the island are the large San Michele and the smaller San Cristoforo. San Michele was designed by Mauro Codussi in the 1460s and was one of the earliest Renaissance churches in Venice, with a white facade of Istrian stone. On the right side of the facade is the San Cristoforo chapel. This Chapel is a hexagonal building surmounted by a cupola. It was built by Guglielmo dei Grigi between 1528 and 1543.

The San Michele church and the San Cristoforo chapel, are perched on the edge of the lagoon, and metal barriers have been constructed to protect them from the wash of passing boats.

San Michele is a Roman Catholic church which once sheltered a Camaldolese monastery. The monastery was mostly demolished in the 19thcentury, but the church remains. The church is dedicated to Saint Michael the holder of the scales on Judgement Day, a fit guardian of the sleep of the faithful dead.

The strongly delineated masonry courses of the ashlar faรงade (Ashlar masonry is a type of building construction that uses rectangular blocks of stone.) are carried right across the Ionic pilasters (A pilaster gives the appearance of a supporting column but only has an ornamental function.) giving a striking look to the faรงade of the church.

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Some of the different styles of architecture of buildings seen as I went around the canal by boat .

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Transport in Venice is by motor boats, ferries and for tourists with deep pockets â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Gondolas. As you can see in this photo, gondolas in the foreground and then motor boat and a ferry in the far left. Many of the buildings on the Grand Canal are lavish constructions, with decorative wrought iron balconies, columns and ornate window frames. All the food and goods for sale are distributed by motor boats.

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After studying all the wonderful architecture in Venice you may stroll in one of the parks. In fact there were very few people in the parks – I suppose you can find parks in most cities but the combination of architecture and

canals is not found everywhere. Most of the wonderful churches also contain masterpieces of paintings, mosaics and sculptures – no wonder the parks are empty!

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AN AFTERNOON WITH ELIZABETH ROSE - Bernadette Meyers

I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t recall exactly how old Rose was when we first met, she was still small enough to sit in the double pram with her twin brother. Over the years that our families homeschooled together she was always a character from some story-book or other. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not sure when she was actually Rose, however, she was excellent at role play and dress ups, always creating very authentic costumes for every occasion. Those book characters are as real to her and I as the people walking down the street. They are our old friends, so it was a delight to spend a day in her room chatting about those friends while delving through her treasures.

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Her delicious, vintage, treasures of corsets, lace, tulle, wicker baskets, brass candle holders, pearl buttons, wooden spools of thread and old books, including her collection of different editions of Pride and Prejudice. And then there was the quite lovely mannequin on which hung a half made ball gown that she is creating for herself. The ball has not yet been announced, but she is hopeful for an invitation to Netherfield or Pembley any day.

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And then there was the quite lovely mannequin on which hung a half made ball gown that she is creating for herself. The ball has not yet been announced, but she is hopeful for an invitation to Netherfield or Pembley any day.

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I asked where she had managed to source such an exquisite collection of vintage corsets and she told me that they were all made by herself over the years to go under her fancy dress costumes so they would sit accurately to the period. I was quite amazed, since they were so beautifully stitched and at the same time appeared yellowed with age - Rose has only just turned 19.

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Regency period has been a major influence on Rose’s dress design. When I quizzed her on any particular authors or novels of influence, she instantly replied that the 2005 movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice was very visually inspirational to her. Since we both pretty much know that film frame by frame, we decided that the shoot for the photos we were making for the Creative Spirit exhibition would pay homage to it in some way. Rose basically spent the day in character as Elizabeth Bennett. When I saw the image “Mr Darcy’s Visit” pop up on my computer screen, I immediately recalled the scene in the 2005 movie when Lizzy is stunned after Darcy leaves the letter. For that image, I shot through a large crystal in front of the lens which caused the repetition and distortion of Rose’s form. Back home, I processed the images with a desaturated, grainy vintage feel to suit the mood of our day together.

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The installation â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ball at Merytonâ&#x20AC;? is made from pieces of lace from Roseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creations and pages from a 1945 edition of Pride and Prejudice fused to pattern pieces with encaustic wax. Some of the important items for a lady attending a Regency ball are included; bonnet, Spencer jacket, dance card to record the names of gentleman with whom she intended to dance, a fan with which she could communicate in sign language and a reticule to carry her essential items such as smelling salts, handkerchief, calling cards and money.

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These photographs and encaustic installation pieces were part of an exhibition called Creative Spirit in which I explored the creative processes of six artists and my relationship with them using photography and mixed media artwork.

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Rose has made several gorgeous wedding and formal gowns for clients and now runs her own business at Kilaben Bay suppling gowns and period costumes. - Bernadette Meyers ÂŠ 2018. All Rights Reserved on article and photographs - Bernadette Meyers ÂŠ 2018 Issue 29 - December 2018

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N A T

A L I E

MEMORY JUG AFGHANISTAN

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NATALIE DUNCAN Natalie is an artist and ceramicist from Dungog and many of her works “reflect the special connection between women and ceramics”.

She was awarded the 2017 Newcastle

Emerging Artist Prize and in 2018 Natalie won the Sculpture on the Farm Local Award. In the Hunter Valley. Natalie says “While I was in the army I was lucky enough to do the Combat Photographers course in 2009, it was here that I was exposed to Robert Capa and the other wartime photographers. I took up photography and I knew that I wanted to work in a creative field. I deployed to Afghanistan not long after, and was encouraged by my Commanding Officer to document the deployment. When I came back from Afghanistan I decided that I wanted to go to university and study art. Ironically I moved away from photography into sculpture and it was here that I was exposed to ceramics and have been smitten with it ever since.

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Memory Jug Afghanistan - Natalie Duncan

I made this work for the Napier Waller Art Prize. The Jug is narrated with memories from my deployment to Afghanistan, she was inspired by the War rugs that you see at the markets over there. ‘Afghani’ Women have recorded generations of conflict in these rugs. To be truthful I had little confidence the Jug would get into the prize let alone be a highly commended finalist, and now acquired by the Australian War Memorial.

She is quite a feminine little piece; adorned with quirky pastel memories, beads and stones. She is an imperfect, odd shape, covered in cellulite like dimples. She’s not dark or foreboding,. There are no gunfights in her, she has no tales of bravery or valour. Many would question if at all she belongs in such a prize. She is an observer, a keeper of unseen trinkets of memory. Her artist statement details most of the memories she is marked with. But she could have carried a thousand more. She could have told of tired young heads resting in hands, or shaky voices calling home. She may have mentioned a thousand lonely shooting stars on piquet, and worn out playlists. She would definitely show un-kept hair, regrowth and overgrown beards. She might be sad to tell of long blank stares and deeply furrowed brows. She has to, in part, be empty; how else could she speak of absence? But most of all she would scream with rage, how dare you leave them in the dark now that they’re home.

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MEMORY JUG - ARTIST STATEMENT - NATALIE DUNCAN

Watching the boys go outside the wire for days and knowing thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a hundred ways an IED could

be hidden beneath their feet Seeing them return filthy and exhausted, and being grateful and ashamed of how much experiences vary in Afghanistan Hearing Maximus fire for the first time and thinking we were under attack

Sunrise Islamic prayer songs Getting rocketed, and sleeping through it Drinking horrible Turkish coffee and watching helicopter sunsets Wishing I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have boobs as I put on my Kevlar

Freezing on Piquet Being able to pick the ones on their third or more rotation Helicopter rides in between old, old mountains Missing Christmas at home

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The only woman I saw, floating in a sea of blue material on the back of a motorbike Watching the Americans in their bandanas with mini guns and loud music at the range

Little ones with half melted faces Giggling at the Dutch men in their tights Trying not to stare at the Regiment boys, but wondering why they all have the same coloured hair and beards

Skyping my kids and they’re bored The little boy at the markets with a tumour in his eye and no shoes The LECs laughing at my Pashto Studying my freshly fingerprinted hands, and Ben the Sniper goes, ‘Don’t worry Nat we’d find you

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ART NEWS Issue 29 - December 2018

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STUDIO LA PRIMITIVE ARTS ZINE Since October 2013 Robyn Werkhoven has published

the Online Art and Literary magazine STUDIO LA PRIMITIVE ARTS ZINE. . Featuring artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interviews, exhibitions, art news, poetry and essays. Arts Zine in 2017 was selected by the NSW State Library to be preserved as a digital publication of lasting cultural value for long-term access by the Australian community. www.studiolaprimitive.net

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Click on cover to view the issue.

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Click on cover to view the issue.

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studio la primitive jewellery Dungog By Design 224 Dowling St, Dungog NSW.

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DUNGOG BY DESIGN handmade & Inspiring

224 Dowling St Dungog NSW

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D E

B O

D U

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T O N

S DUNGOG BY DESIGN 224 DOWLING ST. DUNGOG NSW Issue 29 - December 2018

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S DUNGOG BY DESIGN GALLERY, 224 DOWLING ST. DUNGOG NSW Issue 29 - December 2018

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Timelesstextiles Exhibition Calendar 2018 - 2019 28 NOV - 22 DEC

16 JAN - 10 FEB 2019

ECHOES: ORGANIC FORMS

ECHOES OF CHILDHOOD

In felt Pam Hovel

Varelle Hardy & Marilyn O’Brien

23 DEC - 13 JAN

13 FEB - 10 MARCH

BLACK & WHITE

BIG INK

NCEATA

Fiona Duthie

90 Hunter St Newcastle East Hrs: Wed - Saturday 10am - 4pm Sun 10 am – 2pm.

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GALLERY 139 SATURATION NEWCASTLE PRINTMAKERS WORKSHOP THURS 13 DEC - MON 23 DEC 2018 Official opening: Saturday 15 December, 2 - 4pm.

Selected members of the Newcastle Printmakers Workshop Inc. exhibit in this group curated exhibition.

Gallery 139 Beaumont St. Hamilton, NSW

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Rhino Images - Art and the Rhinoceros Lorraine Fildes and Robert Fildes. Art and the Rhinoceros - There are over three hundred Rhino images in this book.

Whether in the ancient past or in the present the rhinos are always represented as huge, powerful and solitary animals. The book includes paintings, drawings, woodcuts, etchings, rock carvings and sculptures of the rhino all depicting the power of the animal. These images of the rhino range from early civilisations such as in China, Roman Empire, Indus civilisation in Pakistan/ India area and from Southern Africa down to current day images of paintings and sculptures produced by modern day

artists. The text indicates where you may find these wonderful images as well as the websites of the artists concerned, the caves where the rhino images have been found and the places where posters use the rhino image. There are very few of these magnificent wild animals left in the world, so unless they are protected and managed, artistic images will soon be the only viewing option.

Rhino Images â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Art and the Rhinoceros, First Edition, 2017, is available for download at The Rhino Resource Centre web site. Direct Link :

http://www.rhinoresourcecenter.com/index.php?s=1&act=refs&CODE=ref_detail&id=1518479271

Left : White rhino crash at Whipsnade Zoo, England. Image: Robert Fildes ÂŠ 2017. Issue 29 - December 2018

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