NATSIAA 2022 Exhibition at MAGNT
I finally got to see the NATSIAA exhibition at MAGNT last week and as usual completely fell in love with many pieces. I’ve just discovered the virtual gallery too, which is well worth a look, especially if you can’t make it to the gallery while it’s on.
Nola Yurnangurnu Campbell, Yunpalara 2022, synthetic polymer paint and oil stick on linen, 152 x 101 cm
Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu, Buymarr 2022, graphite pencil, recycled parchment paper, digital projection, 58 x 68 cm
This work above by Gutiŋarra Yunupiŋu was captivating for its’ simple yet effective layering of a projection of the waves breaking onto the drawing on paper.
The above works (rows top to bottom) stood out because of:
The colours, shapes and forms found within the landscape. The artist has their own visual language.
The material; the artist spraying an aluminium panel with black paint and then etching his design into the panel. Beautiful in it’s way of catching light - reminding me of my copper panel work.
The combination of paint, ball-point pen, oil pastel and coloured pencils on board - no pretension in sophisticated materials - just simple mark-making on a cheap cardboard board.
COLOUR! I’m always drawn to these colours used together; yellow, pink, orange. Beautiful loose mark-making.
Monochromatic beauty, but the edges of the black underpainting bleeding out onto the canvas was really evocative for me, bringing me back to the abstract landscapes I created in gouache for Close to Home. I enjoy when paint is left to create its own path somewhat (chance), and the artist then works into that.
It was surprising to me that of all the amazing works I saw it was the multimedia work by Jimmy John Thaiday that stayed with me for the days following the visit.
Jimmy John Thaiday, Beyond the lines 2022, single channel HD video: 16:9, colour, sound, 5:22 minutes
Joanna del Nido’s show A Literal Translation at Tactile Arts was also inspiring, especially in the sense of opening my mind to working with different materials. Her work is bold, colourful, and makes you laugh out loud at the play on words.
