Dennis O'Connor - Layered Studies

Above are the studies I've been working on of Dennis O'Connor, an associate of Arthur Wicks.  I've been working on these layered paintings through trial and error to get the process perfect.  Although I've made drawings like this countless times, these are among the first I've done as a process of portraiture, to capture the actual likeness of a person with this method.  The process is solid now so subsequent works will be made more directly with (hopefully) only one piece as the study.  The finished works for this series will be painted on glass.

Below is a preview of an animation I'm working on for my installation Finding Arthur Wicks, scheduled for exhibition in October.

Arthur Wick's Moving Preview from Tony Curran on Vimeo.

This Little Teapot Exhibition: Pic's and Video

This Little Teapot was exhibited at Paper Plane Gallery in Rozelle and opened on April 13.

Above is an installation shot of the exhibition of one part of the show which features my work Impression, 2011 appearing on the right side of the photo.  The work is made from tea on canvas.

Impression, 2011.  Loose-leaf black tea on unprimed canvas.

By Tony Curran

Reading tea leaves has been a source for uncovering untold fortunes of the future.  Whether it's reading tea leaves, coffee, star constellations, knowledge and inspiration have been developed from uncertain accidental or coincidental appearances.  This is why Da Vinci encouraged young artists to find inspiration in bits of dirt on a wall or patches of damp.  The process of finding an image in something vague like a cloud can be considered divine intervention, an omen or a message from the heavens.  Or they could just be psychological constructions which we project onto the form to make it meaningful.

Impression is a self portrait of a teapot in loose leaf tea painted by the teapot, assisted by the artist.  It's a visually vague tea painting, left open to interpretation much like how we see the world, art and ourselves, how we tell stories about phenomena, and how difficult it can be to say anything meaningful about our own selves.  Its visual vagueries are a result of a lack of ability on behalf of the teapot to perform an action it was not designed to do - depict itself, nevertheless once the teapot is seen, it cannot be hidden.

What is the difference between what we see depicted in nature and what we see depicted in art?  In this work the artist's has worked with the the object of the drawing while using it as the drawing tool to intentionally depict a teapot.  Attempting to articulate the form of the teapot the cumbersome nature of the teapot was an obstacle for rendering a descriptive picture of the teapot.  As a result the picture is a stain which slightly resembles teapotness.  The sepia colour makes this impression aged, like an old photographic print.  It visually reminds one of a relic such as Shroud of Turin which is itself a vague impression and its vagueness makes it more authentic as a sacred artifact.  The face of Christ in toast or on a public wall seems to pop up every now and again sometimes making front page news.

Intentionality sets it apart from accidental phenomena, fluke or mistake.  Intentionality alone makes the work a representation of the teapot whether or not it looks like one.  The context of the exhibition further helps the viewer to see the teapot in the image, and it is through these associations and the intentionality of the artist (teapot) that an engagement with the work is possible.  

You might be looking at it upside down.

this little teapot @ paper plane gallery from qwux on Vimeo.

Whites and cubes

I'm getting more and more interested in the idea of presenting my portrait as a "white cube" portrait, which is actually what I set out to do the whole time, but I hadn't really considered the role the white cube was going to play in the presentation and reception of the portrait. By the white cube, I'm referring to the aesthetic convention of the gallery space being "white" and with space enough around the works that they can have a "neutral" context. It is perhaps the neutrality that is important and not the literal white. Some white cubes are black for certain shows, and some have a colour which aesthetically or conceptually ties the works together. In saying that the same could be said for the actual cubeness of the work as well. I doubt of all the white cubes I've been in hardly any of them qualify as real cubes.

I'm pushing and pulling in two different directions for this work. There's the direction that I could have a minimal display of Everything as a digital projection of some sort, an other way is to not have the digital part at all but to literally have all of the drawings that make up the space that has been explored by the work. Ie every drawing that I've done for it arranged like a spatio-sequential mapping - a room with thoughsands of drawings of different scales depicting different angles of the same figure. The interesting thing about this would be that it would be similar to the old Salon type exhibitions where paintings were hung on every inch of wall, even the ceiling. I like the maniacal obsessiveness it would suggest too. I suppose another manifestation would be a synthesis of the two types; white-cube and pre-white-cube.

As you can see there's plenty of work to go.

These are photos from the Daily Advertiser covering the exhibition at the Art Scoeity. I'm standing there with Sonya Gee and Sue Dyde (President of the Art Society). It's a good opportunity to brag that it's my third time in the Daily Advertiser, this time no longer a budding artist; I am an Art Enthusiast. This exhibition was a great example of a non-white-cube exhibition.

Past and Present at the Wagga Wagga Art Society

Past and Present opened last night at the Wagga Wagga Art Society on Small St, Wagga Wagga.  The show featured a whole ton of WWAS members including myself and also doubled as the launch for the recently printed "A History of Art:  Wagga Wagga Art Society 1949-2009" by Nancy Rew.

The Wagga Wagga Art Society is the only thing in Wagga Wagga that closely resembles a grass-roots arts organisation.  Though there have been attempts in the past to create an artist run initiative (ARI) in the area, the rent is apparently too high and for some mysterious reason there seems to little interest from the broader community.  That is of course with the exception of much of the imported arts and music events that travel through and it seems that the Wagga Wagga Art Gallery is aware of this and has to devote a substantial proportion of its exhibition program to bringing in the culture from outside.

What's also interesting is the fragmentation of the visual arts in Wagga Wagga.  Fine Art students from the local University and Tafe campuses aren't very involved in the Art Society, nor do they seem to try and start up their own ARI despite the huge number of them and the mix of visual interests and talents among them.  The impression I get from the staff of the Wagga Wagga Art Gallery is that they hve difficulty in getting the students in and active with the gallery.  To throw another ingredient in the mix I'll mention that there is another Society called the Lakeside Art Group who get together about a ten minute drive out from Wagga central in a suburb called Lake Albert.

This fragmentation might come down to age.  For the last few years (at least) the Wagga Wagga Art Society has been keen to involve younger people to share skills with them and to get fresh ideas and practices in the mix.  As a (relatively) young member I can feel the love for that reason, I am the only member that I know of that is under 40.

That brings you up to speed with the 2011 history of the art climate here.  I've yet to read Nancy Rew's book which I purchased at the exhibition last night which traces the history of the Art Society from 1949 and also parallels this history with the history of the regional art.  Despite the beautiful Wagga Wagga Art Gallery and the National Glass Art Gallery, the Wagga Wagga Art Society is definately the artistic epicentre of Wagga, hence it is a joy when I can just come on in and exhibit with them.  Plus they can draw a crowd.

Everything is going to be OK

After one oficial week of being in the studio I have made some intereting additions to Everything, including some more coloured bits which add dimensional complexity to the work.  I'll soon be at the stage when I need to upgrade my studio as I've been told will happen this Wednesday because I am quickly running out of wall space for the this project.  While I have plenty to fill in as you can see above, I have already started to stick extra bits of paper and board so that I can build up the height of the work.  I only neeed a space big enough so that I can organise each drawing, it's not an issue of display so much.

I've been reading a book which Sonya Gee bought me called Internet Art: The Online Clash of Culture and Commerce, by Julian Stallabrass, which talks about the history of the internet, the internet as a medium for artmaking and all the political stuff with file sharing etc.  I finished it in a few days, partly because it's so interesting and partly because I'm having to go through books at an enourmous rate to cover the research I'm working on.  It's raised a few interesting ideas for the project which include what the finished work will become, how the work can evolve and what the work is right now while it is hosted on the internet.  It's also made me think of some interesting parallels between the internet as a space of universal consciousness which plays neatly into the conceptual elements that are forming around the portrait and subjective realities.  

I realised that I'm also making a portrait and I haven't chosen my subject yet.  That's going to have to be decided soon because it's going to greatly inform the rest of the development of the work.  I had an idea to complete the work as a self portrait...............  I might be a good guinea pig.

New Studio at Charles Sturt University - Wagga Wagga

I've settled in nicely in my new studio at CSU Wagga among the rest of the other Fine Art students.  At the moment I've just been setting up Everything.  Because of the space that I have, I'm able to put the drawings up on the wall so that I can visualize each part of the whole.  I couldn't do this previously because it's a hassle to stick things on the walls at home (rental property).  It's amazing to have a studio again that I can mess up even if guests come over.

A few people are asking me about what is going to become of the project and at this stage I'm not sure.  It has a few, some potential stakeholders including the Wagga Art Gallery as well as CSU which will both shape the outcome of this project to some degree, but I'm expecting it to turn into an immersive installation work for a gallery.  If you still haven't checked it out, do it.  In a few days I'll put up a colourful update.

Residency Exhibition at Fraser Studios for Sydney Open

Photographs by Sonya Gee. Thank you to Hendra Gee for your fantastic modelling.

AURALDYNAMICS: The Story of How I Got My First Drill or Why My Dad Is A Legend

I got a call from the Sydney Central Mag to organise a photo shoot with me and my ears for a write up they wanted to do. They asked if I could have my work mounted for them to shoot.

I took to the streets with ideas in my mind about how I would go about mounting them. Usually the finished paintings of ears end up sitting in a box reminiscent of Dexter's bloodslides in the show Dexter. At other times the ears the ears are scattered around my desk like in the manner of a mad genius.

I had this crappy wooden door hanging around my studio space that I decided I could use. It weighed about 600kg and so I lifted it easily into position. I primed it with the only acrylic sealant I had - Gesso, and took to lining up the pencil grid that would form the arrangement of my ear paintings.

The Church Bells rang - it was my dad calling me on my phone which I had personalised "church bells" as the ring tone for when he calls me. "Hi Dad," I said.

"I'm downstairs."

"I'll let you in."

I walked down stairs two levels to get the door for my Dad. Little did I know there was more I would have to get.

Dad pulled out of the boot of his car more tools than I'd ever seen. A drill that he declared "It's for you I picked one up for you," he said, "I'll have to get one for (my brother) too."

My first drill. Complete with a hundred thousand or so drill bits for masonary, timbre and other sorts of building stuff. For the next half hour it was like, "Dad what does this do?" and "Dad can this drill into that?" We felt like family again.

But the answer to the "Does this drill into that?" turned out to be no. So Dad drove us both to his place to get a "hammer" drill and I drilled into the "Limestone mortar brick" and arranged my ear paintings for the first time EVER. I just needed magnets and the stage would be set.

I went to a shop and discovered magnets cost about 1.85. I needed 24 and paid through the nose for it. I have since found magnets for significantly cheaper for the same type ($0.10 each).

And that is the story of how I got my first drill.

THE PHOTO SHOOT

A photographer and a journalist from the Central Mag came along and modeled their ears and interviewed me and took photos of me with the ears, and the ears themselves and me lying down seductively with ears. I had never modeled like this before. It was weird and funny and I was nervous. In the end they printed a story that didn't feature the two days' work that I spent installing the six ears on the wall. But since then I've been inundated with emails from people wanting to schedule their ear with me. There are still places for ears so let me know if you haven't modeled and would like to. I've changed the rewards for models from getting a print of your ear to actually getting a finished painting of it. To read the write up in the Central Mag, click the image and it will aggrandize.

This Little Piggy Wrap

DISCLAIMER: The above is an image stolen from the Rah Collective. I stole it from them because I felt like they stole my face (pictured centre) for their panorama and because my art features in the frame vaguely in some way. My action of appropriating this photograph featuring my intellectual property and person for publication in a medium that will lead me to no financial gain will be the moment in the 21st century that defines online copyright for generations to come. I suppose now that I have included a link to their website (above) this is free advertising for them.

The opening night was a sweaty can of sardines full of cheap but delicious cider. People I had lost contact with for some years made the effort to come and check it out and I enjoyed watching strange people view my art. I particularly enjoyed the anonymity of the occasion. Now as the weekend has ended so has the exhibition.

China Heights is one of those "cool" galleries I used to go to when I was into sick graphic art and graffiti - stencil - stuff, full of people who since those days continue to populate the Oxford Art Factory, Monster Children Gallery and twothousand.com.au. Understandably having my work in a show there makes me feel relevant, particularly because of the context provided by the curator and coordinator, Rebecca Murphy, and all the work she and accompanying artists put into it. For a sneak peak of the work of all the other artists check out the Flickr group. For a little while the rest of the works will be for sale at the curator Rebecca Murphy's website.

Thank you to everyone who made it along and made the show the huge success that it was.

Tony Curran

This Little Piggy Went To China Heights

It's been the talk of the week. All over twitter, facebook, frankie and culture blogs, This Little Piggy curated by Rebecca Murphy features 25 artists including myself. Each artist was invited to immortalise a ceramic piggy bank (supplied) through the power of contemporary art. As tempting as it is to spoil my surprise for this Friday's opening, I'm going to encourage that readers come along to the event for some great pieces and some free cider.

My Piggy was a challenge. It took me a while to get used to working with sculpture. Sculpture is a difficult discipline and without spoiling the ending, I pretty much smashed the piggy until it became a painting. It has evolved to become part of the Yellow Line series of my works and it refers to the role we all play in the demise of our loved ones.

Artist featured in this exhibition include:

Ben Allen, Burntfeather, Caitlin Shearer, Chrissy Lau, Dreams of Grandeur, Emma Kidd, Gloz, James Carey, Jessica Klingelfuss, Kaitlin Beckett, Little Gonzales, Luke Burcher, Megan Dell, Mz. Kat-ii, Natalie Perkins, Nicole Tattersall, Qwux, Rebecca Murphy,Renee Anne, Robbie Karmel, Tiger, Tony Curran, Yewot, Yolanda Stapleton, Yuki Nakano

Underwatery Love Open

Thanks to everyone who came along, it always makes a show when you have a load of folks there who want to drink with you. Thanks to Huff for his unreasonable request at New York Pizza which ended up scoring a whole pie (RRP $38).



At Gallery 285 I have installed a work called Death Perspective.


This installation is made up of drawings which are aimed to immerse the viewer at the scene of Death. In the context of Gallery 285's show "Underwatery Love" I used the theme to explore the nature of attraction - the kind of attraction between predator and prey.



Blue and Red Cellophane were used above an overhanging web to colour the downlights as well as to dispurse the lights' reflections similarly to the oceans surface. A sound track was also installed:




The work will be up for about a month and opening hours are from 2-6 weekdays and 12-6 weekends. Enjoy the show!






photos courtesy of Sonya Gee