GREENAWAY ART GALLERY  

 

3D x 4 LOUISE HASELTON / PETER MCKAY / SEAN RUIZ / LILLIAN TOWNSEND [2009]


Rosalie Gascoigne once said she didn't worry too much about which material she used as long as there was plenty of it.

Peter McKay raids the kitchen for alfoil, Lillian Townsend the sewing room for cotton thread, Sean Ruiz rips out maps, and Louise Haselton takes gum branches from the garden and old rear-vision mirrors from car wrecks.

These materials are transformed to carry a new association, giving new meaning and interpretation to reflect the artist's concept. These are fresh, inventive and playful works.





LOUISE HASELTON
Louise Haselton produces sculptures and installations in which the formal placement of objects is contrasted with an element of randomness. Traditional precision craft techniques such as casting might be positioned within an assemblage of found objects. Following a Helpmann Academy residency at Sanskriti Kendra, Delhi, in 2005, Louise has been making sculptural works using materials gleaned from the world around her.

left: Louise Haselton I need a new world, branches, enamel paint, shisha mirrors, 320 x 130 x 90cm; right: detail

PETER MCKAY


Peter McKay, Dirty Little Rainbow, gallery installation view


SEAN RUIZ
My work involves systems. I find it easy to think of things in that way – with process there is no right or wrong simply a result. There is no need to worry about comparison or emulation and the focus can shift to other things. I feel there is an opportunity to give work that little bit of energy. For me it is being grateful for and dedicating the work. It is my sincerest hope that others are able to experience this inspiration from the work I make. I think of this approach like how food can be prepared into deliciousness and being able to give blood with enthusiasm so that the person who receives it feels the positive energy behind it.


left: Sean Ruiz, gallery installation view; right: World 7, paper maps, 14cm diameter


LILLIAN TOWNSEND
Imagination, memory and observation all play a part in my drawings. People and animals, sometimes found within my working process, dolls and toys, shapes patterns and markings from nature, some personal signs and symbols, and the art of different cultures are also influences.
The sewing machine stitch extends the possibilities of the imagery, and relates well with the ink marks. The meaning of the drawings may be sensed but not defined, and is open to the viewer’s response. I like the idea that some little episode is taking place, and that there is sometimes a sense of mystery in them. Masks also speak of something unknown - they may protect, disguise, or conceal, and raise questions adding another layer of something hidden. On a visit to Glenrowan, the town of Ned Kelly’s last  stand, my son bought me a little tourist “Ned Kelly”soft toy doll. This doll, and the awareness of the transformation of Ned Kelly the outlaw to a legend, and to a tourist attraction influenced some of these works. This at times resulted in a sense of whimsy.

left: Lillian Townsend Studio Ned 2, pen, ink, machine stitching on paper, 40 x 29cm; right: gallery installation view