ART GUIDE

Exhibitions to see this July

WORDS BY CHESTER OGILVIE

KUNMANARA CARROLL: NGAYLU NYANGANYI NGURA WINKI

ON HOLY WATER & QUANTUS

Geelong Acquisitive Print Awards

The earliest known example of printmaking is a woodblock print on silk that has been dated somewhere during the Han Dynasty from 206 BC to 220 AD. The first paper print is believed to have been made during the seventh century. Blending technical skill and creativity, this nationally acclaimed prize exhibition will feature established and emerging artists from around the country in a showcase of traditional and modern printmaking techniques.

GEELONG GALLERY 29 JUL–08 OCT

From JamFactory’s ICON series (in partnership with Ernabella Arts), this touring exhibition celebrates the career of Luritja/ Pintupi/Pitjantjatjara artist Kunmanara Carroll. Born in 1950, Carroll did not begin painting until 2009 following his retirement as his town’s constable. Meaning I Can See All Those Places, Ngaylu Nyanganyi Ngura Winki examines the legacy of cultural knowledge Carroll has sought to preserve through his paintings and ceramic sculptures.

SHEPPARTON ART MUSEUM UNTIL 22 OCT

Geelong’s Platform Arts will host exhibitions at Gallery One and Gallery Two across the same dates. On Holy Water is a love letter of sorts to New Journalism pioneer Joan Didion’s (1934-2021) essay Holy Water about the importance of the essential source in sustaining life. Quantus, by Liam Herne, is an exploration and documentation of three spaces: the physical environment, virtual space and the imagined.

ON HOLY WATER

PLATFORM ARTS, GALLERY ONE 15 JUL–11 AUG

QUANTUS PLATFORM ARTS, GALLERY TWO 15 JUL–11 AUG

RACHAEL ROBB: I HAVE BEEN HERE BEFORE When so much seems to be screaming ‘bigger’, Rachael Robb prefers the quieter, meditative touch of small-scale oil paintings. Having lived and worked in Europe and London for near-on three decades, Robb returned to Australia in 2020. Inspired by techniques that began in Northern Europe centuries ago, Robb examines her return home through gestures, images and objects of her everyday life.

Surf Coast Arts Trail

From hobbyists to professionals, it’s a good day for a stroll as the Surf Coast Arts Trail shines a light on the Surf Coast’s thriving arts community. All mediums will feature at private studios and local community arts facilities, with more than 200 artists across 58 venues participating. Preceding August’s main event will be the Arts Trail Taster Show. The Arts Trail will take place across August 5 & 6

NICOLE WASSELL: DESIDERIUM~N

“I am inspired by the idea that others are often moved by the images, sometimes seemingly from an emotional thread.” They are the words of Nicole Wassell, an artist whose work is largely figurative and often biographical. Focusing largely on printmaking and oil-based painting, Nicole has maintained a studio practice for more than three decades, creating art through the exploration of themes including sexuality, sensuality, isolation, courage and vulnerability.

RADIUS ART SPACE, HEPBURN 20 JUL–02 SEP

HOOP GALLERY, TORQUAY UNTIL 30 JUL

Y Ballarat Youth Art Exhibition

MOQ spells cat is about the only thing I remember from childhood illustration. Here, the talent shines far brighter. With their ethos of ‘We believe in the power of inspired young people’, The Y’s annual Youth Art Exhibition hands over the easel to artists between the ages of twelve and twenty-five years of age. It has only been running since 2021, but has already grown to the point of having its own youth curator.

BARKLY SQUARE UNTIL 18 JUL

CALISTA LYON: REMEMBERING FUTURE

Raised in Victoria’s Tallangatta Valley and currently living in Ohio, Lyon’s site-specific commission sees her use photographic collage techniques to map the ecological impact of gold mining. From drone footage of a local mine currently in operation to her mother’s engagement ring, the remapping of water traces to the portraits of the hands of the labourers who toil, Remembering Future is Lyon’s selection, intervention and recording of history and a reminder of the extraction still in place today.

LA TROBE ART INSTITUTE, BENDIGO UNTIL 31 JUL