▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: OLIVER TANNER SCULPTURES

Left: Oliver Tanner, 'Copper Drip Bust' 2011, copper + silver solder on stone base, 70 x 30 x 30cm
Right: Oliver Tanner, 'Copper Wire Bust' 2011, copper + silver solder on stone base, 60 x 60 x 30cm

Using the body as a vehicle, Oliver Tanner’s work explores the balance between presence and absence, the fragment and the whole, emphasising structures of negative and positive space.

Tanner will be exhibiting as part of Introducing III..., on view from the 17th of April until the 5th of May.

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: JAMES GUPPY PAINTINGS

Left: James Guppy, 'The Gift' 2011, acrylic on linen, 120 x 61cm
Centre: James Guppy, 'Skua Wings' 2011, acrylic on linen, 61 x 30cm
Right: James Guppy, 'The Suitor' 2011, acrylic on linen, 120 x 61cm

The Gallery has added several new paintings by James Guppy to the stockroom. These works were completed in 2011 and continue themes he introduced with his series of New Work in 2010. The animals that were paired with the figures in his earlier works now merge into one being with animal heads on human bodies and human faces emerging from lizards, birds and horses.

Guppy will be holding his next solo exhibition titled Anima Rising at Brenda May Gallery in March 2012.

▶ MYLYN NGUYEN NOW REPRESENTED BY BRENDA MAY GALLERY

Brenda May Gallery is please to be also adding Mylyn Nguyen to our stable of represented artists. Nguyen has been exhibiting at the Gallery since 2007 and will be holding her next solo exhibition in November 2012.

Seven new additions have also been added to the stockroom from Nguyen's successful 'Bottle a Tree + Girl' series.


Mylyn Nguyen, 'Bottle a Tree + Girl' 2011, glass bottle, dirt, sponge, twig, watercolour + ink on paper, 9 x 4 x 3cm variable

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: HELENA LESLIE, SHADOW SERIES 'A STROLL' & 'RESTING DEER'

Helena Leslie, 'Resting Deer' (detail) 2011, acrylic on plywood, plastic figurine,  40 x 30 x 4cm

From a distance Helena Leslie’s latest additions to her Shadow Series appear to be a splatter of paint upon a wooden board, alluring viewers in for a closer look. Once examined up close, a small figurine is discovered to be at the centre of the seemingly amorphous shape. It is realised that the splatter is in fact shadows created by the figurine, painted at multiple angles. ‘A Stroll,’ features a woman taking a step. This action appears frozen in time, however time is still moving around her, creating long white shadows as moments pass by. In contrast, ‘Resting Deer’ features a figurine portraying a calm instance. It is enlivened and animated by the deep fuschia hue the work has been painted in. Both works illustrate a sense of time using a technique reminiscent of sundial shadows in effect and also successfully display the power of the miniature.

Helena Leslie, 'A Stroll' 2011, acrylic on plywood, plastic figurine,  40 x 30 x 4.5cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: JIM CROKE 'ALL SORTS' & 'OUT OF SORTS'

Left: Jim Croke, 'All Sorts' 2011, steel, 11 x 13 x 12cm 

Right: Jim Croke, 'Out of Sorts' 2010, steel, 8 x 14 x 14cm 

‘All Sorts’ and ‘Out of Sorts’ display Jim Croke’s ability to create lively sculptures out of heavy materials. When viewed from above, there is an illusionary endless depth to both works, as the blocks are piled on top of each other with little breathing space. Once given a side-view, the cubes seem to bubble above their bases, adding lightness to these dense, compact pieces. Conjuring thoughts of liquorice cubes in its title, ‘All Sorts’ displays a balancing act, as the solid chunks appear to be on the brink of toppling over. Reminiscent of sugar lumps, the blocks in ‘Out of Sorts’ are only just contained by their cubed base. Both sculptures are similar in nature and feel to Croke’s 2009 work ‘Looking at a River but Thinking of the Sea,’ in that they share the same sense of activity and tension. Where the larger work consumes the viewer in it’s jumbled and chaotic appearance, ‘All Sorts’ and ‘Out of Sorts’ are more like compact worlds about to explode.

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: CORRIGAN FAIBAIRN 'AURORA' & 'IDLE TRANSITION'

Left: Corrigan Fairbairn, 'Aurora' 2010, canvas, steel & wire, 16 x 15.5 x 10cm 

Right: Corrigan Fairbairn, 'Idle Transition' 2010, canvas, steel & wire, 13 x 14.5 x 10cm 

Corrigan Fairbairn’s ‘Aurora’ and ‘Idle Transition’ are small sculptures animated by their spiky exterior and rotund shape. Stretched between the metal loops and arcs, Fairbairn has fixed canvas with small twists of wire. The canvas is painted in a restricted palette of faint earthy tones, which soften the hard lines of the work. The spiky edge of the sculptures are contrasted by the fluid movement of their curved frames.

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: SYBIL CURTIS 'STRIKE A LIGHT'

Sybil Curtis, 'Strike A Light' 2011, oil on linen, 35 x 35cm

The detailed painting ‘Strike A Light’ by Sybil Curtis presents a silent moment within a deserted industrial building on Sydney’s Cockatoo Island. Curtis’ ability to find the beauty in and give warmth to factory scenes and other areas of construction is displayed in this image through her use of tone and light. Despite her employment of hard lines and solid shapes, softness is achieved through the teal features and blue undertones.

The salient feature is five roadwork bollards huddled along a wall, providing a point of contrast. As they jump from the otherwise calm colour pallet, they become personified. The arched windows and streaming light, that are a focus of ‘Strike A Light,’ give this industrial setting a Cathedral-like presence. As Curtis explains, she is interested in the energy created when different structural elements are interfacing, such as “…when two colours or textures meet, or a curve intersects with a straight line.”

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: JIM CROKE 'GRAVEYARD SHIFT'

There is rhythm without logic achieved in the seemingly random placement of curved metal objects that make up Jim Croke’s 'Graveyard Shift'. It is difficult to concentrate on one part of this work, as the scribble of materials sends the eye in all directions. Even the rectangle that frames the tubular shapes can’t contain them, as they burst out and over the edges. This lively piece is full of movement and activity, defying the weighty quality of its steel medium. By allowing the surface behind it to peep through, this wall-mounted sculpture utilizes the palette of the wall behind it, reveals its depth and creates shadows that further animate this work.

Jim Croke, 'Graveyard Shift' 2011, steel, 14 x 51 x 5cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: MYLYN NGUYEN 'BOTTLE A TREE + GIRL'

Mylyn Nguyen, 'Bottle A Tree + Girl' series 2011, glass bottle, dirt, sponge, twig, w/c + ink on paper, 8.5 x 4 x 3cm variable each

Now available in the Gallery stockroom are twelve new additions to the 'Bottle A Tree + Girl' series by Mylyn Nguyen. The series was first shown as part of her 2010 solo exhibition Into the woods, past the giant, down the well, over the golden hay. The small sculptures embody Nguyen's sense of playfulness in her work and one features the greenish bear character that was introduced in her 2009 exhibition The amazing magicool journey of bear and me and the friends we met along the way. Both of Nguyen's pets (a cat and a dog) are illustrated in new pieces which are appropriately titled 'Bottle A Tree & Girl + One'

▶ STOCKROOM HIGHLIGHT: TANMAYA BINGHAM ‘AMALGAMATION’

Intricately detailed images perfectly executed are characteristic of Tanmaya Bingham’s artistic practice. An ode to this is her work ‘Amalgamation’, part of a 2009 series of the same title. In this work she unites the multiple stages of human life to create one all encapsulating form. This autobiographical work is laden with symbolism that combines her childhood, adolescence and adulthood into a hybrid human that, despite it’s distortion and personal connection, has a universal quality in its nature. The most salient feature suggesting a combination of selves are the eyes, which have shadowed multiple sets demanding attention through their direct gazes. This insinuates that this figure is looking at the world through the eyes of her past, present, and perhaps, future.


The luminescent body that extends across the stark black background in ‘Amalgamation’ simultaneously contains an alien, human and spiritual quality in its form and placement. A lead that extends from her belt is connected to a hybrid creature that her left hand affectionately hovers over. The other hand is outreached, acting as a vector line towards a small grave. On the figure’s left shoulder a manifestation of self is comfortably perched. A connection to place is visually revealed as the figure’s body melds into her surroundings, creating ambiguities between the body and the land through the use of colour and symbolism. Bingham has used coloured pencil across a painted black background to create this highly emotive and unarguably skilful amalgamation of her selves.

Left: Tanmaya Bingham, 'Amalgamation' 2009, colour pencil, mixed media on board, 242 x 120cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: SYBIL CURTIS 'LOTS OF STEEL'

'Lots of Steel' by Sybil Curtis is a new addition to the Gallery stockroom that hails from the Inside Outside series and features her technique of layered perspective. Her compositions document without being literal and her work preserves the industrial spaces that are quickly disappearing. Within the contemporary visual arts, these buildings have particular relevance as they are often reclaimed as venues for public display with the famous example being the Turbine Hall of the Tate Modern, London and local examples of the Biennale on Cockatoo Island and the Danks Street complex in Waterloo. In her recent exhibition, Curtis displayed paintings of the buildings on Cockatoo Island used by the Biennale (pictured left) within the Danks Street complex, establishing a metaphoric layering of artistic space much like the perspectival layering within her works.

Sybil Curtis, 'Lots of Steel' 2011, oil on linen, 100 x 100cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: MICHAEL EDWARDS, 'JUGS OF WAR'

'Jugs of War #3' 2011, oil on canvas, 40 x 30cm; 'Jugs of War #4' 2011, oil on canvas, 40 x 30cm
'Jugs of War #5' 2011, oil on canvas, 30 x 40cm; 'Jugs of War #6' 2011, oil on canvas, 40 x 30cm

The new series of paintings by Michael Edwards titled 'Jugs of War' is a departure from his wrapped and bound objects but they explore similar themes of political and social conditions. Upon first glance, the blue and white patterned porcelain appear to be merely decorative objects sitting on a shelf. However, Edwards has replaced the typical blue patterns with illustrations of military paraphernalia ranging from tanks to grenades and guns and the political undertones of the work are fully realised. Edwards often paints ordinary objects that initially appear plain but reveal more to the viewer the more they are studied.

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: PETER TILLEY 'SEARCHING FOR THE SEA'

The first sculpture from Peter Tilley's upcoming solo exhibition is now available for sale ahead of the show. The work is carved from reclaimed timber and includes an oxidised cast iron figure.

Tilley's exhibition will run from Tuesday the 30th of August until Saturday the 24th of September. The new body of work will shift "between still life tableau and compositions based around the figure. It could be seen as a dialogue with the self while reflecting on issues of the times and the nature of society." (Peter Tilley, 2010)

Peter Tilley, 'Searching for the Sea' 2011,
cast iron and reclaimed timber, 42 x 64 x 9cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: FOUR PAINTINGS BY ROBERT BOYNES

Far Left: Robert Boynes, 'Pearl's Lane' 2004, oil on canvas, 120 x 84cm
Left Center: Robert Boynes, 'Escalator' 2008, oil on canvas, 120 x 80cm
Right Center: Robert Boynes, 'Flourescence' 2010, oil on canvas, 120 x 80cm
Far Right: Robert Boynes, 'Streaming' 2010, oil on canvas, 120 x 80cm

Brenda May Gallery is proud to offer four new paintings by Robert Boynes for sale via the stockroom. The earliest of the works, 'Pearl's Lane' is a glimpse of urban details through a veil of hanging ping-pong balls installed at the end of a tiny ally in Melbourne. According to Boynes, "one always sees more than one thing at a time" which is a common trait also found in the two paintings from 2010, 'Flourescence' and 'Streaming'. The brilliant blue canvas 'Flourescence' presents glowing fluorescent light bulbs viewed through a shimmering array of water droplets. Each droplet contains a complete image of the light bulb, bent and refracted through the natural convex lens. The title 'Streaming' references the content of the painting; a stream of DNA coding that was transmitted through a television. In this work, Boynes has combined science and technology to denote the human body which is the subject of the majority of his paintings. The figure dominates the composition of 'Escalator' and the viewer is provided a low vantage point with which to gaze upwards at the man in the painting.

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: PETER TILLEY 'LAYER UPON LAYER'

The 2002 assemblage follows in Peter Tilley's tradition of using found items, in particular objects of nature. The repetitive arrangement features criss-crossing bones in four layers, spaced with small pieces of lead.

The bone was sourced from the sand dunes north of Newcastle, near his studio. After sorting the bones by their various anatomical parts, Tilley arranged them in geometric patterns within heavy display boxes.


Left: Peter Tilley, 'Layer Upon Layer' 2002,
bone lead, timber, 37 x 37 x 6cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: TANMAYA BINGHAM 'FROZEN MALADIES'

Left: Tanmaya Bingham, 'Frozen Malady 4' 2011, watercolour on unglazed porcelain, 10.5 x 6 x 6cm
Right: Tanmaya Bingham, 'Frozen Malady 10' 2011, watercolour on unglazed porcelain, 9 x 6 x 5cm

According to Bingham, "These artworks are an exploration and exaggeration of individual human maladies which when brought to light and frozen in time become unique imperfections that equal perfections." Bingham delicately applied watercolour to unglazed porcelain in this series of 10 works first exhibited in the Sculpture 2011 show.

▶ SAM ROBINSON: DECAL PORCELAIN BOWLS, CUPS + ILLUMINATORS

Sam Robinson, 'Pretty Decal Cups' 2011, porcelain - hand applied decal, 7 x 8.5 x 7.5cm

Brenda May Gallery is pleased to welcome a new series of handmade porcelain bowls, cups & illuminators by Sam Robinson to the stockroom. The new works feature hand applied decals ranging from flowers to fish and butterflies. Also available are her popular watermelon bowls, cast from watermelons and bitter melons (pictured below). Please direct any queries regarding pricing or availability to the Gallery.

Sam Robinson, 'Large + Small Watermelon Bowl' 2011, porcelain - hand applied decal, 6.5 x 16.5 x 17.5cm + 6 x 11 x 11cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: TODD FULLER DRAWINGS COMPLETED DURING HIS CITE DES ARTS RESIDENCY

Left: Todd Fuller, 'The Escape (Burrow, The Sequel)' 2011, mixed media collage on paper, 56 c 75.5cm
Right: Todd Fuller, 'A Found Friend (Tin Man)' 2011, mixed media collage on paper, 29.5 x 41.5cm

"Under strict self-imposed instructions, I attempt to draw every day, pushing ideas, integrating imagery and attempting to learn from the Masters that are suddenly accessible. There are days when my studio offers solace from the cultural shock of the city and I hibernate, creating a great deal more than expected. I return with several animations and a box of drawings which British Airways politely tells me is 11 kilos over my baggage allowance."

-Todd Fuller, 'Residency at La Cité International Des Arts', Nava Quarterly, March 2011, p.13.

Left: Todd Fuller, 'A Soul On The Street (Tin Man)' 2011, mixed media collage on paper, 56.5 x 75.5cm
Right: Todd Fuller, 'Lost (Tin Man)' 2011, mixed media collage on paper, 50 x 64.5cm

The drawings were completed during Fuller's residency at the Cité des Arts in Paris and composed upon a collaged background of pages from French books. The majority of works were created in conjunction with his animated films, the title in brackets referencing the specific film.

The two drawings below are from a new animated storyline by Fuller that "involves a shelf on which the man not only stores his heart but a jar of hope, box of happiness, a bottle of joy and all sorts of intangible but important 'stuff' for safe keeping. The man grows and so to does his heart, he finds a friend and realises that he needs that heart but he cannot get the jar open."

Left: Todd Fuller, 'Cross Section, Subtraction (Jar of Hearts) 2011, mixed media collage on card, 70 x 50.5cm
Right: Todd Fuller, 'Safe Keeping (Jar of Hearts)' 2011, mixed media collage on card, 70 x 50.5cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: JAMES GUPPY 'RED POPPY'

The 2005 painting 'Red Poppy' by James Guppy has never been publicly exhibited. Upon completion, the work entered into a private collection and is only being released for sale now, a full six years later. The 91.5cm square canvas is hung on the diagonal making it a 128.5cm square painting. The diagonal canvas was a personal challenge for Guppy as it is difficult to resolve a composition in that shape. Guppy began creating the diagonal works in the early 90's and the diamond shape was first incorporated into his peeping box series.

James Guppy, 'Red Poppy' 2005, acrylic on linen, 128.5 x 128.5cm

▶ NEW IN THE STOCKROOM: EMILY MCINTOSH 'EGG'

Following her 2010 solo exhibition, 'Of Memory', Emily McIntosh has continued her scientific investigation within her artistic practice with a focused look at the egg. For McIntosh, the egg signals potential. It is one of the only single celled organisms that can grow into anything.

Each 'Egg' is solid formed hot glass from a furnace. McIntosh gathers the melted glass on blow pipe which she is constantly rolling to get a uniform shape. She creates the ovoid shape by manipulating the mailable glass with a wooden block. The works are composed of three individual gathers of glass with the surface carved back and hand finished with a diamond wheel for a uniform lathe surface.

Left: Emily McIntosh, 'Egg' 2011, solid glass, timber, 12 x 8.5 x 8.5cm