University of Melbourne Art in the Library: Past Exhibitions

May-June 2005

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Pia Johnson

Artist Statement:

Dance Strokes

Every brush stroke has personality, creating unity within itself and the whole character. Dancers have this ability as well, using body movement to portray different qualities. By looking at the body and its language through dance movement, I have translated it to a pictographic character language. Each character therefore represents a different movement, but has no meaning beyond the imitation. Painting them on a free hanging paper scroll emphasizes the idea of movement, but also evokes the Chinese calligraphic aesthetic.

On display in the Baillieu Library until 17 June

Jackie Bailey

This Life Is No Longer Private 2005

Short video of installation

Mixed media, including website and four films:

"Under the pillow" (3 min 20 sec)

"Dear Dad" (5 min)

"What are you going to do now?" (1 min)

"Free" (30 sec)

Website: http://www.anjalawrence.com

Artist Statement:

This life is no longer private - literally. The installation springs up in public the day after the character, Anja, has disappeared from the space which is traditionally private, the forum for her personal life - her bedroom. The work explores the notions of intimate space versus public space and how one's erstwhile apparently solid proprietary rights to one's life become fluid when one does something out of "character", thereby giving default permission to others to scrutinise, judge and even participate in what was previously deemed private. The installation experiments with viewers' responses to the possibility that Anja's story is "real", through the realism of the bedroom and letters from Anja's "mother" exhorting passers by in the Baillieu library to help her solve the puzzle of where Anja has gone. It also explores the theme of escape versus release, presenting Anja's emotional journey from her father, to her partner, to a break with the past which has shuttled her out of her private space and into the world beyond - although what this break constitutes is for the viewer to decide.

Actors: Bec Elliott, Aurelien Mondon

Singing: Bec Elliott

On display in the Baillieu Library until 17 June

Michael Skilney

Michael is an Artist/ Interior Designer/ Colour Consultant markel@alphalink.com.au

Artist Statement:

These paintings form part of an ongoing series based on flower and landscape studies. The work aims at challenging peoples' perceptions and questions how we look at images and how we become aware of their underlying complexities.

When viewed from a distance the visual content becomes a lot clearer and obvious. The forms and colours combine to create an illusion of realism. Upon further inspection up close to the works, you realise that these images are in fact a product of carefully orchestrated geometric shapes.

The viewer is taken into a "floating world" of surreal images much like that seen under a microscope. This quality in the works leaves the abstracted image open for a variety of interpretations.