CONFLUENCE + BEEING Exhibition Opening

Craft ACT warmly invites you to join us for the openings of CONFLUENCE + BEEING  

7 July - 27 August 2022

CONFLUENCE: 2021 Artist-in-Residence Exhibition

Valerie Kirk AM | Harriet Schwarzrock

The annual Craft ACT: Craft + Design Centre Artist-in-residence program supports local and national artists to each undertake a residency at Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage in the Namadgi National Park, and a two week research component within a national cultural institution in Canberra. The program facilitates access for the artist to national cultural, tertiary and research institutions and their collections, curators and researchers. A group exhibition of new work by each artist is held annually, and a catalogue produced about the program is disseminated internationally.

The exhibition CONFLUENCE is the culmination of Craft ACT’s 2021 Artist-in-Residence program showcasing the work of Valerie Kirk and Harriet Schwarzrock which is the results of their engagement in the two-part residency project - researching at Geo Science Australia and creating in Namadji National Park.

After delving into the hidden treasures of Geoscience’s National Mineral and Fossil Collection; Valerie and Harriet spent time in Namadgi National Park’s Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage, exploring and making art; taking with them a deeper understanding of the geological attributes of the landscape, which engendered new ways of looking and creatively engaging with the environment. 

The resulting exhibition CONFLUENCE embodies the essence of the Artist-in-Residency program showcasing the profound impact of sustained immersion in the collections of Geo Science Australia and the environment of Namadgi National Park on the work of both artists. Exploring new ideas, research, and material the residency gave space and time for the artists to experiment, explore, and develop a deeper relationship with the landscape, their practice, and themselves – invigorating their creative spirits and generating new artistic direction. 

BEEING

Dr. Julie Bartholomew | Mahala Hill

This exhibition features the work of established craft-based artist Dr. Julie Bartholomew and early-career contemporary ceramic artist Mahala Hill. The title of this exhibition is aspirational because it refers to the continuing survival of bees, beeing pollinators and beeing in existence. Populations of bees are on the decline on a global scale. They are severely impacted particularly in Australia since the Black Summer fires. The loss of billions of insects is little understood, and there are consequences for humans because bees are major pollinators and sustain biodiversity.

Beeing aims to bring bring greater visibility to bees through the craft practices of these artists. Both artists aim to utilise the aesthetic power of craft practice to engage audiences and encourage critical discourse around the significance of bees and threats to biodiversity.