“Scalene” at Piermarq

Currently Exhibiting with Piermarq in “Scalene”, alongside Max Daniels and Caleb Reid.

The show continues until March 24th 2016.

http://www.piermarq.com.au/scalene-group-exhibition/

 

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Thank you…

I have some very exciting news!!! Earlier today I found out that I have been accpeted as the 2014/2015 Resident artist at the Wollongong Art Gallery!! I applies several weeks ago, I was notified that I had been short listed last week and had an interview yesterday. I wanted to share the good news with you all and send out a very big thank you to everyone; friends, family, peers, who have supported me thus far in my journey as an artist and creative practitioner. Thank you for buying works, your kind and constructive criticisms, words of encouragement, drinks, beers, coffee’s and food that so many of you have selflessly shared with me over the years, and not to mention the loaning, sharing and donations of various art materials and supplies. I would even like to extend a thank you to the people who did not support me, had only negative things to say about me and my work. Thank you to you because you taught me that no matter how many set backs you have, how many rejections, how many negative comments are made, no matter how hard it gets; or how hard people choose to make it for you, that you should never give up on your dreams and aspirations.

As many of you will know, art and painting are more to me than just a hobby, more than just a passion or something I am keen on. It is a way of life, I live it, I breathe it every day. An additional thank you to everyone who wished me luck and sent their congratulations today. I only say sorry to those who I didn’t get to text only because my regular phone is in for repairs and I have been trying to get everyone’s numbers back. But I hope this status reaches you, once again a big thank you to all.

Now I will be committed to sustaining a regular practice through the gallery’s residency program; much like I have been practising full time. However, this opportunity will afford me my own creative space; a studio within the Wollongong Art Gallery itself. Over the next 12 months I will be working and producing work to go towards and exhibition. I will also be engaging with gallery patrons and members of the great public through the gallery’s community engagement programs; giving artist talks, studio visits, workshops and more.

As some of you may know I am already painting towards an exhibition at the Wollongong Art Gallery called “Fractured Beauty” which will be in September, and I also have a commission to complete for a charity fundraiser in October. I will be quite busy over the coming few months and even busier over the coming year. So I will apologize in advance if I don’t get to spend much time with everyone of my friends, family and peers. I hope that you all understand the great commitment that I will be making over the next twelve months. Though I think that you all do. To the 2000+ people who follow me through my artists page, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr etc. I will definitely be continuing my posts on a regular basis. Posting progress shots and updates about my work and my working practice.

I’ll leave it at that for now, since I’m guessing this might be turning into a bit of an essay to read. But I really want to say thank you one last time; even though it could be said a thousand times more, thank you, thank you, thank you.

Artist of the month April: Guy Maestri

Daily posts of the work of the artist Guy Maestri on my artist page on Facebook. Like my page in the link below. Also follow me on Twitter and Instagram @nikuzo87

 

 

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Guy Maestri, “Luke’s Lane No.9”, 2014, Oil on linen, 87 x 77 cm.

 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nik-Uzunovski-Artist/225201424159742

America Painting a Nation (a short review)

The “America” show at the Art Gallery of NSW is a little lack luster. It was building up to be something quite epic. However it ended abruptly around the 1960’s. An exhibition about paintings and painters that created works that were influential to America as a nation and also leaving a mark on it’s people, trademark American painting. Where’s Basquiat, de Kooning, the other minimalists like Frank Stella. What about Julien Schnabel? What about Warhol and Lichtenstein?

It’s just cuts off right about halfway through the modernist era. There was no fullstop, almost felt like reading through the Harry Potter series and stopping at book four and calling it quits. It has left a bad taste in my mouth. As I sit here in the final two rooms, looking out at the directions to the book/gift shop I am a little shattered. My appetite was just beginning to grow, seeing work by O’Keefe, Rothko, Pollock and Krasner I was expecting to move on, but I was stopped dead in my tracks. Stuck in a modernist time warp.

Though on a positive note I did find the works on show to be of a high calibre, strong, bold, informative of their time and context. Works I haven’t seen before, some intimate examples of my favorites. Honorable mentions to Pollock and Rothko being hung together, brothers in arms and independent voices at the same time. Edward Hopper’s work stood out, quiet and stoic. Always the clever narrative that requires a quiet eye and an open mind to decipher. The works by Sargent, Homer and Whistled absolute monuments. Portraits and landscapes that have not lost their effect on the viewer.

Overall the quality of work shown was outstanding, however the curating of this show comes into question. It felt as though I was going for a nice walk through the woods and then suddenly faced with a white wall that had the words “Gift Shop” on it.

http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/america/