Post solo

Here are the installation images from my solo show at Gallerysmith back in March this year.  The work was the culmination of research completed as part of my Master of Fine Arts degree.  In many ways the Mellorado exhibition gave me some closure on some aspects of my practice and this has now paved the way for new, I would say riskier work.  I think the biggest shift has come in my desire to work more in installation, the arrangement of the works within the space, inviting an element of audience interaction and the ability to connect with the works from different vantage points.  

Its been a little challenging working out in which direction to go since Mellorado.  I've been allowing myself to sample and experiment widely, to do some small projects and develop starting points for new work. In practical terms its meant going back to exploring collage with paper and cloth, a new series of self portraits and  a return to zine making.  At the moment I'm working on getting together some exhibition proposals, I would really love to exhibit more in Sydney  and look at interstate exhibition spaces - Perth, Brisbane and Melbourne are on the radar! 

Currently I have some work in the Feminage show at Cross Art Projects and will be in another group exhibition at the Manly Quarantine Station on 16 September - will post more on this soon.

All images by Armelle Habib Photography

Mellorado - installation view 

Narrative Threads talk Sunday 20th May 2012

Regeneration - Contemporary Quilt Textiles is currently on show at Manly Art Gallery & Museum until 3 June 2012.  As part of the exhibition I have been invited to give an artist's talk together with Liz Williamson and Cecilia Heffer.  The talks are on this Sunday at 3pm at the gallery and are on the subject of Narrative Threads.  Narrative has always been an important element in my own work and my recent work has specifically explored cloth as archive.  I'm very much looking forward to exploring the links between contemporary textiles and the unique qualities of cloth and fibre to tell stories.  Hope to see you there! 

You can also see the exhibition catalogue here

Mellorado, Gallerysmith until 14 April 2012

Mellorado, installation view

Mellorado, installation view

Mellorado, installation view

My second major solo show titled "Mellorado" opened last week at Gallerysmith in North Melbourne. The exhibition was opened by Dr Patrick Snelling, artist, educator and curator.  It was a challenging task to install the mostly three-dimensional work in the gallery which includes a series of 11 cloth figures and numerous painted gourds.  

Mellorado explores the interconnections between family, identity, culture and heritage, the impact of migration and travel; and cultural transmission.  An exploration of my personal and family history, supported by two substantial periods of field study in Montevideo, Uruguay. The artwork was born out of a two year research project for my Master of Fine Arts degree through the College of Fine Arts/University of New South Wales.  The research represents my continuing interest in the experience (and inherent politics) of hybrid identity by engaging with my mixed African, Uruguayan and European ancestry.  The artwork links  family narratives with significant cultural and historical events such as the Uruguayan civic-military dictatorship (1973-1985), the Atlantic Slave Trade and the Australian and Uruguayan Bicentenaries 1788-1988 and 1811-2011 respectively.   

Adopting the standpoint of both researcher and subject, I investigate the role of the family archive and the autobiographical within contemporary art practice.  I am interested in the continual re-working or rehearsal of connections between personal and cultural memories as a strategy within contemporary art practice. Specifically in relation to work that references the topics of migration, exile, diaspora and displacement in conjunction with family history, gender and race.  I found inspiration in the work of Aleks Danko, Vivan Sundaram, Fiona Foley and Maria Magdalena Campos Pons. The process of rehearsal also brings the traditional into the contemporary and functions not so much as a challenge to the past, but to the present and/or a possible future. For this research I looked to post-colonial theoretical perspectives on displacement and diaspora in addition to the use of autobiographical references and ancestral histories. I was particularly drawn to the writing of Nikos Papasteriadis, Ghassan Hage, Okwui Enwezor and Pal Ahluwalia.  

By its very nature, the creation and dissemination of art is a form of cultural transmission, a product of the specific conditions under which it is made.  My work aims to create a tension between the celebratory and the realities of living between cultures.  The combination of image (pattern, colour and texture) and 'Spanglish' text, whilst on first impressions may appear decorative or inaccessible,  attempt to reveal the political undercurrents of my work and the complexity of cultural identity. Mellorado translates my ancestral investigations and experience of migration into an exploratory visual language,  simultaneously questioning and reaffirming a sense of belonging.   

Mellorado is on show until Saturday 14 April 2012 at Gallerysmith, North Melbourne. To view the works in the exhibition click here

Tamworth Opening - Part 1

Brook Morgan 

Cecilia Heffer

Belinda von Mengersen

Demelza Sherwood

Detail of Demelza's work

Install shot

Almas Gemelas/Twin Souls

My twins

Great crowd for the series of artist talks

Martha McDonald

The official opening of the Tamworth Textile Triennial was last Friday 30 September. A group of us in the show drove for 6 hours from Sydney to be present for the opening and series of artist's talks over the weekend. It was a wonderful experience to meet other exhibiting artists and engage with a wonderfully supportive local and visiting crowd.  The show looked amazing and it was immensely valuable to hear other artist's speak about their work and discover the subtle interconnections between all the work.  The triennial has been curated by Patrick Snelling a practising artist and educator at RMIT.  


It was a very inspiring weekend but it wasn't just the exhibition that struck a chord. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the Australian landscape driving through various country towns - it felt both familiar and very foreign. It reminded me that within the confines of my bubble in metro Sydney, my experience of place is very narrow. I took lots of photos on the trip and collected bits and pieces as souvenirs.  I'm still trying to digest it all *sigh*. I will also add that Bendemeer pub, 45 mins drive from Tamworth has an awesome old school jukebox right next to the pool table.


Part 2 of this post will include more pics and some notes I took during the talks.