JCG is currently CLOSED
Our next exhibition runs 7 February – 24 April 2020
Brian Robinson
Brian Robinson: Tithuyil (moving with the rhythm of the stars) is the first major survey of the artist’s work that brings together prints, assemblages and sculptural work marking the last decade of Robinson’s acclaimed multi award-winning contemporary practice.
Brian’s works present an intoxicating world-view. A constellation of wise-eyed sea creatures, muscular warriors, stars in the heavens, broad petal flowers, and hollow eyed skulls sweep through his works. Jostling amongst this realm of references to his island of Waiben, and the surrounding sea waters and islands of the Torres Strait, are the tokens and talismans of a parallel life within a global culture of super heroes, cheeky comic characters and ancient Classical mythologies.
Curated by John Curtin Gallery Director Chris Malcolm and Mossenson Galleries Director Diane Mossenson, the works have been selected to capture the scope of this fluid artistic imagination – one where the artworks and audiences are co-opted into the spirit realm of the islander imagination.
image: creativecowboyfilms.com
John Stringer Prize 2019
Artist Bjoern Rainer-Adamson has taken out the 2019 John Stringer Prize. His two epic kinetic works, Cluster and Protozoon, hang alongside new mixed media artworks by five fellow contemporary Western Australian artists, each nominated as competitive contenders for this year’s prestigious Prize.
The winner was announced at a special art industry event hosted by the John Curtin Gallery which included art industry professionals, dignitaries and members of The Collectors Club.
The other five artists, Ngamaru Bidu, Rebecca Dagnall, Elham Eshraghian, Kendal Gear and Holly O’Meehanwill show their work alongside Bjoern’s winning pieces as part of an exhibition that opens to the public fromtomorrow.
Through the methodical deconstruction of machines and analogue technologies, Bjoern Rainer-Adamson assembles kinetic sculptures built to take on a life of their own. The application of tools to make everyday work more efficient has always been fundamental to human development. The industrial revolution saw a significant step toward automating the workplace where mechanised processes lessened the need for people to toil in repetitive and dangerous work.
The John Curtin Gallery (JCG) has once again partnered with The Collectors Club of Western Australia and the Kerry Stokes Collection to host the prestigious John Stringer Prize – created in honour of acclaimed curator, the late John Stringer (1945–2007). The annual Prize was established in 2015, and commissions six Western Australian artists to create new work from which the winning artist will be determined by a secret ballot conducted by The Collectors Club members.
The 2019 John Stringer Prize finalists are Bjoern Rainer Adamson, Ngamaru Bidu, Rebecca Dagnall, Elham Eshraghian, Kendal Gear and Holly O’Meehan.
The artists were selected by an independent selection panel consisting of Sandra Murray, Art Curator at Bankwest and The Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia; Lia McKnight, Visual Artist and Collection Manager at Curtin University; and Sarah Yukich, Collection Administrator at the Kerry Stokes Collection.
The exhibition, at the JCG, will feature new work created specifically by the six Western Australian contemporary artists, working in a range of media including photography, video, sculpture, textiles, ceramics and painting.
The Prize was established in memory of John Stringer, renowned Curator of the Kerry Stokes Collection and advisor to The Collectors Club, who passed away in 2007. It honours John’s life and the legacy of his influence on and contribution to local visual arts and culture. In keeping with John’s passionate devotion to the arts, and his wish to see greater patronage of local talent, the Prize is intended to encourage and support Western Australian artists. The Prize, which was conceived and facilitated by The Collectors Club, connects locally based artists with collectors, thus contributing to the vibrancy and economic viability of the Western Australian art scene.
Winner John Stringer Prize 2018
Jarrad Martyn, Range, 2018, oil on canvas, 120 x 150cm
Collection Focus – Susanna Castleden
Perpetual Cruise Line
2010, Linocut on paper,
Gift of the artist through the Cultural Gifts Program, 2016
Arising from a curiosity about how the world is encountered and represented, Castleden is interested in how the consequence and affect of global mobility has changed the way we perceive the world, and how this has necessitated alternative ways of visualising our position within it.
Susanna Castleden is one of Australia’s leading print media based artists. Born in London, England in 1968, she studied at Curtin University, Perth, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in 2001 followed shortly after with A Master of Arts in 2002. In 2014, Susanna completed her PhD at RMIT University. Susanna is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Enquiry at Curtin University.
Castleden has exhibited regularly since 2003 having held over six solo shows to date and participated in national and international exhibitions and events. She has been the recipient of the Bankwest, Burnie Print, Joondalup and Linden Art Prizes. Castleden is represented in major art museums, regional galleries, and university and corporate collections within Australia including The National Gallery of Australia; The Art Gallery of Western Australia; The Kerry Stokes Collection; The Wesfarmers Collection and the City of Fremantle Art Collection.
Collection Focus – Print Council of Australia
This Collection Focus exhibition brings together a selection of contemporary print media artworks that have been acquired through the Print Council of Australia’s annual Print Commission. The Commission has been running for over 50 years and provides the opportunity for public and private collections to acquire new print media artworks from a broad range of Australian artists. The PCA Commission is a significant initiative aimed at fostering the creation of new work in print media and promoting the development of Australian printmaking, while also raising funds for the organisation and supporting artists’ professional development. The Curtin University Art Collection holds 27 artworks from the Print Council of Australia Commission.
Clyde McGill, True stories IV: as we walked 2008.
Screenprint, monoprint, etching. Edition 31/40. 38cm x 57.2cm.
Acquired through the Print Council of Australia Print Commission. Curtin University Art Collection.
Artwork Acquisition
HELP US ACQUIRE THIS IMPORTANT WORK
This significant addition to the Collection will help to expand our understanding of Nyoongar experience and identity, including the ongoing impacts of invasion and dispossession.
Ancestors Before the Journey of the Dreaming is an outstanding example of Shane Pickett’s work, created at the height of his artistic prowess. It is a deeply compelling and visually striking painting that beautifully articulates the resistance and resilience of Nyoongar people and their culture.
Shane Pickett, Ancestors Before the Journey of the Dreaming. 2008, acrylic on canvas 152cm x 121cm
The mission of the John Curtin Gallery is to bring to its audiences, both within Curtin University and well beyond, opportunities to experience and critically engage with the visual culture of our time.
With a view to exploring the infinite possibilities engendered by art, the exhibitions, events and public programs offered by the Gallery are a catalyst for thought, change and exchange.
