Temporal, open and sensory Abstract Realities brings contemporary abstraction to MAG&M
Between 21 Oct – 4 Dec 2022, Manly Art Gallery & Museum will present Abstract Realities, an engaging and immersive exhibition, spotlighting abstract art.
Audiences can expect to see three contemporary Australian artists each of whom explore different formal, material and temporal facets of abstraction. The artists have jointly curated site-specific installations of discrete artworks as well as a personal selection of works by Australian and international artists engaged with abstraction.
Guest curator and Northern Beaches local artist, Sarah Robson will show pieces from her latest body of work that uses felt and string to create artworks that sit between sculpture and painting. Julian Goddard who is a conceptual artist and academic, will show paintings and sculptures made from real objects that highlight the everyday, while David Thomas will show new paintings and photographic works that explore the contemplative function of painting, photo-painting, and installation.
Mayor Michael Regan said he was inspired to see a local contemporary artist bringing such innovative programming to our regional gallery.
“The quality of the curators and artists being exhibited at Manly Art Gallery & Museum is world-class. They bring a taste and flavour of other worlds and new perspectives to the heart of the Northern Beaches, which can inspire and uplift locals and visitors alike.
“The team at MAG&M continues to curate and attract a wonderful calibre of artists like Dr Sarah Robson, whose work was shown last year as a winner in the painting category of the Environmental Art and Design Prize.
“I commend Sarah and her fellow artists for their ongoing contribution to Australian abstract art and academia,” Mayor Regan said.
Curator Sarah Robson said: “Each of these artists explore materials and methods beyond prevailing conceptions of abstraction or representation, preferring an ambiguous site of shifting relationships.
In accord with a ‘less is more’ philosophy, the simplicity of these artworks belies an embodied complexity—a complexity in touch with human thought and experience.”
DETAILS
Friday 21 Oct, 6–8pm Exhibition Opening by Gitte Weise, curator, exhibition researcher and collection manager
Sat 22 Oct, 2 – 3pm - Panel discussion Join the artists in conversation about Abstract Realities and hear how an engagement with this type of work encourages a space of contemplation where experience is amplified through attentive viewing, a slowing of time, and the physical experience of an encounter.
Fri 21 October, 10-11am MAG&M Society Exhibition Preview
Manly Art Gallery & Museum West Esplanade Reserve, Manly NSW 2095
Free entry. Open Tue – Sun, 10am – 5pm (closed Mondays & Public Holidays)
T: 02 9976 1421 E: artgallery@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au
https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/arts-and-culture/manly-art-gallery-museum