Armed with a degree in visual arts from the ANU and a supportive husband, she has set up a capacious exhibition space and is plainly not prepared to compromise her principles in presenting the best of two and three dimensional art, mostly by local artists.
Last weekend Primrose staged a fundraising opening for Autism Asperger ACT and in June she plans to present “ClimARTe Change – local arts responding to the theme of climate change” from June 11 – 28.
Rather than throw together a hodgepodge of artworks for popular consumption at her openings, Primrose’s exhibitions are showcases of fine art.
Right now you can catch a retrospective of the work of ceramicists Debra Boyd-Goggin and Chris Harman, whose large-scale work is more sculptural and functional. Together they run a studio practice in Queanbeyan, though by day, Harman works at the NGA.
Boyd-Goggin was born in Papua New Guinea and lived in the highlands of Tapini for the first few years of her life, later moving with her family to Central Australia.
After a time studying painting and drawing, at the Alice Springs TAFE, she ended up doing her degree in Ceramics at the ANU School of Art.
Boyd-Goggin’s work is rooted in nature, with seedpods a significant influence on both her sculptural forms and the paintings which accompany the exhibition of ceramics.
By carving her clay and subtly airbrushing in her glazes, she achieves a sense of depth in the services of her work.
“In my search for identity I play with the idea that nature and spirit are strongly connected and have influence over the other in understanding self,” she says.
At first glimpse Harman’s works are striking for their scale. Also influenced by seedpods, but even more by underwater vegetation and life, his ceramic works conjure up the image of strange coral and sea weed formations.
Harman’s sculptures bear close examination for the way they have been engineered both inside and out. Born in Colorado, he moved to Australia to study ceramics and glass at the ANU in 2000.
A consistent award-winner in his field he says, “By engineering multiple elements of a form and connecting them with an internal skeleton, I embody complex aesthetics into simple finishes. A continual fascination with plant formations, in particular cacti, succulents and fungi, are central to my research”.
“Another look,” is up until May 7, Mon-Fri, 9.30am-2.30pm and Sat-Sun, 10-4pm, at Form Studio and Gallery, 1/30 Aurora Avenue, Queanbeyan (off Yass Rd near the Motor Registry).
Coming to the gallery from May 14-28 is “Hey little sister, what have you done?”, installations and paintings by Victoria Lees and Lizzie Hall.
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