‘Radical’ is a word often used to describe Conceptual artist Bernar Venet’s works. Yet so many pieces carry enduring appeal, perhaps due to the timeless visual language underpinned by themes of mathematics, science, music and philosophy. Internationally renowned, this enigmatic appeal has rewarded him with numerous enviable opportunities to showcase work, even under the Eiffel … Continue reading
Finding beauty in construction’s destruction takes an explorer to find a “diamond in the rough” If you can’t find a diamond make your own, as Tanya Goel did with ‘Fresco on cement and stone’. This is a wall-mounted series using plaster and graphite on building debris collected from houses of 1950-1970 in Delhi. She started … Continue reading
A beautiful textile map glows from a far wall of Artspace and invites you to step closer into a meditative maze of stitches. But be prepared that when you do look closer, it’s not a travel dreamscape. Rather, Tiffany Chung’s large embroidered map of the world is exploring global displacement and migration emerging from conflict. … Continue reading
Ai Weiwei’s fame is now as monumental as his art, and so sceptics may ask “Is it just media hype”? But, encounter Weiwei’s work and try to resist the feeling of awe. Weiwei’s a master of awesome simplicity and poetry, that hides the complex, nuanced details. Take, for example, ‘Crystal Ball’, Ai Weiwei’s enormous single … Continue reading
Prepare to work #LIKEABOSS HOTDESKING seriously got a whole new meaning. Woolloomooloo is one of Sydney’s ultimate spots for hot property. If you dream of an office with million dollar views to Woolloomooloo’s Finger Wharf, amongst glamorous people and glistening yachts, perhaps you are the anonymous chair donor who transformed James McCallum’s sculpture ‘The Library’ … Continue reading
RUTH JARMAN + JOE GERHARDT = SEMICONDUCTOR. That’s a simple equation. And Semiconductor are now part of the 21st Biennale of Sydney. Rather timely. They came together as Semiconductor in 1997, so it’s their 21st too. More timely: their practice parallels the theme of Sydney Biennale 2018: ‘SUPERPOSITION’. It’s as if Biennale Sydney “Superposition” could not … Continue reading
I’m spellbound by Semiconductor’s Where Shapes Come From 2016, their hypnotic Two-channel HD video. Raw seismic data becomes sound controlled animation, combined with narration as a lab tech prepares samples, filmed in a lab at Washington’s Smithsonian It was showing for Biennale of Sydney at The Art Gallery of NSW. It’s possible to watch this 8 minute … Continue reading
Do your daily encounters already deliver a dose of about Sixteen Conversations in Abstraction? If Yes: Then Riet Wijnen’s artworks may be too complex. …… or exactly how your mind is wired. At first sight, Wijnen’s Sculptuur Sixteen Conversations on Abstraction is constructed with elegant simplicity that recalls Modernist architecture, and is quite meditative to … Continue reading
Celebrating your 21st birthday and having 45 years experience is something we’d all like…right? Who doesn’t want to be a young, fun, carefree optimist with 45 years of wits? Well, Biennale of Sydney 2018 has just that. The only dilemma: how does one choose the guest list for a 21st soirée, when prior parties have … Continue reading
Framed Or Famed 