McClelland Sculpture Survey and Award
Posted: 22 Jun 2011 | By: Ken Scarlett
In the catalogue of the McClelland Sculpture Survey & Award, Robert Lindsay, Director of McClelland Gallery+Sculpture Park, has boldly stated ambitious plans: “To be the national focus for sculpture and Australia’s leading sculpture park” and remarks that they have “the richest and most prestigious prize for sculpture in Australia”. The current exhibition, presenting thirty-four major examples of contemporary Australian sculpture, in addition to the over seventy large-scale works permanently on display within the grounds, suggests that his statements are backed by compelling evidence.
The sixteen hectares of landscaped gardens, open grasslands and a large area of bush ranging from tall gum trees to a dense forest of tea tree, make an ideal setting for the extraordinarily diverse range of sculpture. With map in hand, visitors are encouraged to follow a meandering path on a sculpture walk that is full of delights and surprises. Often sculptures only come into view as one turns a corner or walks past a thick screen of bushes and trees — as is the case with Geoffrey Bartlett’s commanding Nautilus (with three legs) which soars skyward — a 6.5 metre-high sculpture in stainless steel crowned by the nautilus-inspired form at its peak.
Greg Johns has also used steel for his monumental To The Centre 11, though he prefers the warm colour of rusted Corten steel — a colour he believes appropriate for the Australian landscape. Set in an open space, this intriguing work appears to dramatically change its composition as one walks around it, a feature that both surprises and tantalises.
Geoffrey Bartlett and Greg Johns must indeed have been very strong contenders for the $100,000 acquisitive prize, which was ultimately awarded to Louise Paramor for her wonderfully innovative assemblage of numerous and extremely colourful plastic containers, appropriately stored on the top shelf, which explains the unusual title - Top Shelf.
The winding track through the bush takes a sharp turn to reveal this very adventurous, large-scale work actually straddling the pathway — this Top Shelf was high enough to walk beneath.
Frequently there was an unexpected element in the placing of the sculptures or a trace of humour in the works themselves. Jason Waterhouse, for instance, had modified his 1972 Holden H Q Kingswood Station Wagon so that it appeared to have been twisted and distorted by hitting a major obstruction. Jud Wimhurst presented a massive three-screen TV, in which the blank screens merely reflected the surrounding bush, while Colin Suggett made a pertinent comment on our society with his National Anxiety Index, which had self-destructed as the indicator burst out the top of the scale. With genetically altered forms that resemble living organisms, Adrian Mauriks’ Strange Fruit managed to combine aesthetically pleasing works with an underlying message that was faintly disturbing.
In the comprehensive, well-illustrated catalogue of the Survey, Patrick McCaughey observed: “The Australian sculptor has had a long battle to gain the same acceptance and cultural recognition that painters have long enjoyed.” True indeed, though he also acknowledged that “our sculptors, past and present, are speaking to us as never before”. Certainly, the widespread popularity of sculpture competitions which have cropped up throughout Australia, the development of significant private collections and the extraordinary increase in the number of practising sculptors are strong indicators that contemporary sculpture in Australia is vibrantly alive and receiving due recognition.
Images from top:
Louise Paramour, Top shelf, 2010, plastics, steel, pins, bolts, 560 x 230 x 230cm. Courtesy the artist and Nellie Castan Gallery, Melbourne. ©The artist. Photograph John Gollings.
Adrian Mauriks, Strange fruit, 2010, epoxy resin, steel, paint. Largest dimension 225cm.Courtesy the artist. ©The artist. Photograph John Gollings.
