David Jones, artist and poet (1895-1974) begins his PREFACE TO THE ANATHEMATA :

'I have made a heap of all that I could find.' (1) So wrote Nennius, or whoever composed the introductory matter to Historia Brittonum. He speaks of an 'inward wound' which was caused by the fear that certain things dear to him 'should be like smoke dissipated'. Further, he says, 'not trusting my own learning, which is none at all, but partly from writings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, partly from the annals of the Romans and the chronicles of the sacred fathers, Isidore, Hieronymous, Prosper, Eusebius and from the histories of the Scots and Saxons although our enemies . . . I have lispingly put together this . . . about past transactions, that [this material] might not be trodden under foot'. (2)

(1) The actual words are coacervavi omne quod inveni, and occur in Prologue 2 to the Historia.
(2) Quoted from the translation of Prologue 1. See The Works of Gildas and Nennius, J.A.Giles, London 1841.


05 December 2015

Friendly


What are the chances of being in two exhibitions 
both titled ..... ..... and Friends and which both open today? Yep.

HOWARD ARKLEY (AND FRIENDS…)

5 December 2015 - 28 February 2016 
TarraWarra Museum of Art, Australia
Curated by Anthony Fitzpatrick and Victoria Lynn
                                        

Howard Arkley (1951-1999) is one of Australia’s most significant artists. He pursued a singular vision that incorporated aspects of high art and popular culture, such as punk and pop; a love of urban and suburban imagery and architecture; an ongoing preoccupation with pattern and colour; and a life-long dialogue with abstraction.

Howard Arkley (and friends…) includes over 60 paintings by Arkley from 1974 until 1999, featuring a number of works that have not been shown before along with some of his most iconic images. Key paintings have been selected from different periods of his career, including the sparse black and white paintings from the 1970s; his breakthrough into figuration with works such as Primitive and Tattooed Head; his surreal Zappo and cacti paintings; the electrifying house exteriors and interiors; and his final freeway works.
The exhibition introduces three distinctive perspectives to Arkley: his archive, his music and his friends. Photographs, visual diaries, sketch books and source material, on loan from the State Library of Victoria, reveal Arkley’s ideas, influences and working methods in developing his images; a selection of tracks from the artist’s record collection played throughout the exhibition, highlights the influence of music on his work; and the inclusion of works by Arkley’s friends and colleagues Alison Burton, Tony Clark, Aleks Danko, Juan Davila, Elizabeth Gower, Christine Johnson, Geoff Lowe, Callum Morton, John Nixon, Kathy Temin, Peter Tyndall, Jenny Watson and Constanze Zikos, provides insights into Arkley’s immersion and influence within a vibrant, artistic milieu.


 Howard with Georges and William Mora (1981) arkleyworks.com
Julian Dashper & Friends
       
5 December 2015 - 25 April 2016
City Gallery Wellington, New Zealand
Curated by Robert Leonard
   

Julian Dashper (1960-2009) has been a key figure in New Zealand art since the mid-1980s. Julian Dashper & Friends offers a tribute to an artist who changed the way we think about New Zealand art history.

Dashper made art about art. Some of his works pay homage to older celebrated artists, particularly canonical figures of New Zealand art, including Colin McCahon and Rita Angus; others address the workings of the art system. From the mid-1990s, Dashper increasingly exhibited overseas. Today, he represents a transitional figure between the ‘New Zealand painting’ that preceded him and the new generation of post-nationalist, post-medium artists that followed.

As Dashper's works were constantly in dialogue with art history, our show presents his works in conversation with works by other national and international artists—his elders, his contemporaries, and those who followed. These include Rita Angus, Billy Apple, Daniel Buren, Fiona Connor, Colin McCahon, Dane Mitchell, Milan Mrkusich, John Nixon, John Reynolds, Imants Tillers, Peter Robinson, Marie Shannon, Peter Tyndall, Jan van der Ploeg and Gordon Walters.
      

   
 detail
 A Person Looks At A Work Of Art/
 someone looks at something...

 LOGOS/HA HA