Macrocosmia + Bench: beauty, large and small
Our two new exhibitions opened in the company of a vibrant crowd (check them out at CityNews!) and the warm words of Dr Rohan Nicol, head of the Gold & Silver Workshop at the ANU School of Art + Design.
Dr Nicol spoke of collaboration: Elizabeth Kelly's solo exhibition, Macrocosmia is the result of working together with Dr Ralph Sutherland (ANU Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics) and Fitter & Turner Brian Cropp. As he said, "Kelly’s ambitious vision required these diverse fields of expertise to resolve the mathematical and engineering challenges necessary for her constructions." he spoke of these gorgeous, large-scale, free-standing sculptural works as being based on pollen grains, microscopic organic structures.
Turning his attention to Mark Making, which is a group show by young experimental jewellery designers Andy Lowrie, Nellie Peoples, Claire Poppi and Katie Stormonth, Nicol talked about the importance of sharing resources, dialogue and critique: "to pool knowledge and resources and build a sense of community – a community of practice – is a concept that is of course familiar to the crafts. Knowledge transmission and making has long been a collaborative affair. Our colleagues who practice the 'dark arts' of economics would refer to this as orchestrating the factor conditions for growth or even innovation but whatever you want to call it, the enterprise and resourcefulness of this emergent group of makers is admirable."
The work is pretty good too -- make sure you get a chance to come into our gallery to see this exhibition of 70 individual works that balance conceptual ideas about reworking and recycling with beauty and wearability.
The evening was also a book launch for a new monograph on Elizabeth Kelly's career: Colour in Fine Form, published by Merryn Gates/Services for Art (2018). We have copies of the book in our gallery and shop.
Macrocosmia and Mark Making will run through until 25 August 2018.
Elizabeth Kelly will be giving a floor talk about her week in conjunction with National Science Week: Friday 17 August, at 12:30pm in the Craft ACT Gallery.