The February Art Appreciation activity was a lecture given by Bryony Nainby on Aboriginal Art currently on exhibition at the Gallery. Bryony was able to bring the exhibition alive with her well-presented lecture and knowledge of aboriginal art and the audience responded enthusiastically.
The artwork in the exhibition is from a number of artists from three distinct regions of Northern Australia and whilst some of paintings do have images and styles that could be seen to be overlapping or classed as similar, the three regions consider themselves to have separate styles. Some are semi figurative. The Bungle Bungles are obvious in one artist's work. Others have symbols obviously meant to produce images that the viewer will recognise. Some have images of totem animals that are distorted into surreal shapes. Others have symbols that are not meant to convey any meaning at all but have been produced simply for arts sake. Some show figurative images depicting everyday human activities.
This particular collection prompted me to question if any of the artists were at any time thinking in terms of more than one or two dimensions. Or maybe more than two dimensions. If the artist is thinking in more than two dimensions can this explain the dream like influence that aboriginal art implies?
Neville Gibb
The artwork in the exhibition is from a number of artists from three distinct regions of Northern Australia and whilst some of paintings do have images and styles that could be seen to be overlapping or classed as similar, the three regions consider themselves to have separate styles. Some are semi figurative. The Bungle Bungles are obvious in one artist's work. Others have symbols obviously meant to produce images that the viewer will recognise. Some have images of totem animals that are distorted into surreal shapes. Others have symbols that are not meant to convey any meaning at all but have been produced simply for arts sake. Some show figurative images depicting everyday human activities.
This particular collection prompted me to question if any of the artists were at any time thinking in terms of more than one or two dimensions. Or maybe more than two dimensions. If the artist is thinking in more than two dimensions can this explain the dream like influence that aboriginal art implies?
Neville Gibb
