Kick Gallery: CRAIG MACDONALD

Award winning sculptor Craig MacDonald has a show running at Kick Gallery ‘Memento‘ This latest show follows on from his 2010 exhibition ‘Rocket Science‘. Mr MacDonald works are standout, his works live so well in three dimensions it’s hard to flatten the descriptives to words, except perhaps to say wow, they are seriously inspired. His use of bronze is cleverly hidden by an overlay of pure originality. Each piece in this show is so filled with imagination and exquisite craft that one finds several views are still not adequate. MacDonalds’ show runs until December 10.

In February this year, MacDonald was awarded the Montalto Sculpture Prize. MacDonald received the $20,000 award ahead of a strong field of other significant recognised Australian sculptors. The winning work ‘Witness’ was described by Montalto as “‘Hovering just above the surface of the ground, Witness appears as if from another time – aged and totem like, its presence and movement is a reminder that time is not static and what has been seen before can be witnessed again” Witness is on display at the ‘Memento‘ exhibition. Read the full article »»»»

Kick Gallery: The Aerosol Assassin

The Aerosol Assassin: Refining the spirit of graffiti, of guerrilla art can be a tricky practice in contemporary arts. Although contemporary and post graffiti has become an important genre within art today, it is still too often viewed with a specious eye. Talking about contemporary graffiti in art history, the discussion generally starts with Keith Haring or Jean-Michel Basquiat and ends with Banksy.  All this in mind, John Williams  - DUEL – sidles the thin boundary between contemporary art and his much loved street work, a foot either side of a distinct line. Duel’s technique is much lauded by his – street – contemporaries, it is also easily recognized by those who gaze on contemporary abstract art. Duel’s refined stensiling style drags the mind back to Post-Painterly Abstraction and Abstract Expressionism, in this vein Duel is very much an Action Painter,

Duel’s Aerosol Assassin exhibition is a little reminiscent of Mark Tobey’s more intricate works, and like Tobey Duel’s pieces are infact works within works, multi layered, multi messaged geometric abstract works that begged a viewer to seek THE hidden meaning. Amusingly the artist informed me that each picture has a hidden word, then warned he’d had people stand in front of a picture for 45 minutes trying to find it. This latest show is a serious collision of gestural abstraction and guerrilla street art, the works lift Duels art to his next level. The works are intricate, layered and spontaneous. Bursts of color have always been part of Duels form, many of his current works simply pop with color, line and contrast.

“A big part of the inspiration for this show came from Denny Dent, his art and his physical movement making his art really triggered something” said Duel “A big problem in moving from painting the sides of trains to a studio is getting that high, the high you get from running, how do you move that to a studio? “

Attraction to street based works has to be partly based on a seemingly energetic approach, almost an attack on canvass. Staying true to this is a hardship, we all have to make a living and the pressures of conforming to moderation is a hard thing. Duel, fortunately doesn’t seem to suffer any need for an arithmetic mean. His measure is well entrenched  in a glorious history of mischief, a bounding talent and an eye that is well attached to a weirdly wired mind. Duel has realized what many miss, that getting any word out there in a single medium is laborious, and getting the word out is what it’s all about.

As a culture, street art is a complex being, a crew, a need for adrenalin, an eye for good spaces, and a style with the ability to stand out from a sea of layer upon layer upon layer of color. Being pursued down the street at speed by angry land owners and city officials also qualifies as a talent, though Duel says he talked his way out of most tight place. His reputation as one of the worlds finest street artists is important, it keeps him grounded, we are after all what we do. Duel it seems has a need for a public, an audience, his art is and always has been as much about performing as technique, her will doubtless be an interesting - at the least - artist to watch.

“I want different people to view my work in different environments, I like to watch people watch my art, it must be the performer in me, an audience is a good thing”

Duel’s Exhibition Runs Until August 6

Kick Gallery is at 4 Peel Street, Collingwood

For further information visit www.kickgallery.com/duel/

or contact the gallery on info@kickgallery.com

Tim Vagg: Kick Gallery, The Boxer

TIM VAGG

The Boxer Paintings

Exhibition runs June 07 – June 25 2011

Tim Vagg’s latest showing at Melbourne’s best contemporary gallery – Kick - is outstandingly, unapologetically coloquial with a smirkish twist. Mr Vagg’s inspiration seems – in part – to be the cringe factor Australians feel for their own Aussiness. His works are brilliantly gregarious, as always masterly crafted and sit squarely on Kick’s walls.  The always dapper Mr Vagg, opened his show to a packed house, his opening comments a toast to his very oddly angled eye – we do love a touch of irony – commenting on a perspective that is seldom seen from within Australia, an introverted view of ourselves – our history – thought out from an outside point of view and painted by one of our own.  OK, that may have been a little carried away. Vagg’s works are quite outstanding pieces, his homage to – inspiration came from Les Darcy and Lionel Rose – our fighting spirit, our obscure almost freakish embrace of the different.

Those who have followed Tim Vagg’s work over recent years, will have watched this artist develop a style that is uniquely his own. Cohesive, considered and engaging, Vagg creates rich, high key, colourful artworks that appear to almost come alive on the canvas and immediately engage the viewer. Increasingly, Vagg has added a socio-political commentary to his work, through a combination of historical research and intuitive artistic invention. The artist allows us to reconsider and reassess the layers of narrative tied up in the pursuit of the ‘The Australian identity.’ As his raw material, the artist draws on various icons, events, and historical figures to form a visual ‘urban folk-art’ language.

This combination of Tim Vagg and Kick Gallery truly is hand in glove, Jacob Hoerner knows his stuff and brandishes this knowledge masterfully; Great Opening, Great Exhibition!

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Melbourne: Kick Gallery Presents – Tim Vagg, The Boxer

TIM VAGG

The Boxer Paintings

Exhibition Opening 6-8pm June 09

Exhibition runs June 07 – June 25 2011

In his new series, The Boxer Paintings, Tim Vagg continues his recent artistic investigations into Australian history posing questions about the notion and formation of our national identity. Having painted portraits of specific Australian heros and antiheros in recent exhibitions ‘the boxer’ becomes the central motif in his new series. Filled with metaphor and allegory Vagg’s new works again invite his audiences to re-look and reassess Australian history and identity.

Kick Gallery Presents: Ben Elisha

Ben Elisha: Suited Men and Patchwork Women

Afternoon Opening Saturday 3-5pm May 21 2011

To be officially opened by Norman Rosenblatt at 3.30pm Exhibition runs May 17 – June 4 2011

Image: Ben Elisha, Falling Men in Suits, 2010, acrylic on canvas, 92 x 102cm

For further information visit www.kickgallery.com/suited-men-and-patchwork-women/ or contact info@kickgallery.com

Craig MacDonald Awarded First Prize for the Montalto Sculpture Prize 2011

20th of February 2011: Craig MacDonald was awarded the Montalto Sculpture Prize 2011. MacDonald received the $20,000 award ahead of a strong field of other significant recognised Australian sculptors and will now work toward creating new works for other major sculpture prizes in 2011.

MacDonald, who is represented by Kick Gallery and had his debut exhibition Rocket Science in November 2010, will exhibit at Kick again in 2011 from September 20 – October 8. Editions of works from Rocket Science are currently available and can viewed at www.kickgallery.com/craig-macdonald/works

The winning work ‘Witness’ is described by Montalto as “‘Hovering just above the surface of the ground, Witness appears as if from another time – aged and totem like, its presence and movement is a reminder that time is not static and what has been seen before can be witnessed again”

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Craig MacDonald
Witness
Bronze
(Edition of 4)
175 x 54 x 24cm
2011

For further information or to purchase works contact Jacob Hoerner, Kick Gallery Director, on 0412 243 818, via email at info@kickgallery.com or visit the Kick Gallery stockroom at 4 Peel Street Collingwood. Kick Gallery is open Tuesday -Friday 11am-6pm, Saturday 12-5pm or by appointment.

For more info on Craig MacDonald visit www.kickgallery.com/craig-macdonald/
Montalto Sculpture Prize visit www.montalto.com.au/sculpture/

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