Current exhibition

Robert Weaver and Friends

featuring Robert Weaver, Anna-Maria Zupancic, Helen Kibble

25 February – 18 March 2012

11:00am – 4:00pm, Saturday, Sunday and public holiday Monday (12 March)

Robert Weaver

I first developed an interest in art at Gawler in the 1950s and in 1960, I enrolled in Art in Year 8. Since then, I have undertaken various private classes in general and life drawing and water-colour.

This was followed by private painting classes in Townsville, QLD in 1970-71; general drawing and life drawing at the South Australian School of Art (1972); life drawing groups at Byron Bay (1997), Burnside Art Society (2000- 2002), Charles Darwin University (2004), with David Williams at WEA (2004) and at Central School of Art, Norwood (2004-2006); water-colour course by Joseph Zbukvic (2006) and membership of the Adelaide Art Society (2006-2009).

In 2007, I retired from my work as a dental surgeon and became a full-time student at Adelaide College of the Arts, majoring in drawing under Anthony Millowick and Pei Wu and painting under Yasmin Grass and Loene Furler. I graduated with Bachelor of Visual Art & Design in 2009.

Becoming a finalist in the Waterhouse Natural History Art Exhibition proved to be a highlight of 2009.

I believe that an understanding of Surrealist methods and the techniques to achieve them are integral to the making of contemporary artworks.

I am therefore interested in what is meant by the Surrealist requirements to maximise the use of the imagination and to create works of expressivity with elements of spontaneity and the unconscious – in essence, to produce works with a property of visual excitement.

The interpretation of the artwork by the viewer’s use of their imagination is as important as that of the artist!

Anna-Maria Zupancic

I have been involved in art all my life. I have been an art teacher since 1975 and established a gallery in Penola (Local Images), one in Largs Bay (Pier Gallery) and a student and community initiative centre at Christies Beach (Shop Front).

I have taken part in many group exhibitions in a variety of country and city galleries. These include Naracoorte Art Gallery, Local Images at Penola, Sir Robert Helpman at Mt Gambier, Bull Ring at the Jam Factory, Pier Gallery at Largs Bay, Nexus Gallery in Adelaide, Prospect Gallery at Nailsworth, Hughes Gallery at Fullarton, Education Development Centre at Hindmarsh, Pi Pi’s at Port Noarlunga, Port Adelaide Community Arts Centre and Port Dock Hotel.

Currently I am a member of [embrace], a co-operative of independently practising South Australian artists formed to market their work and that of emerging Australian artists. We have a novel partnership with Snooze Mile End, a bedding and bedroom furniture retailer, which displays our work in bedroom settings. The combination of beautiful furniture, stylish accessories and original artwork allows potential purchasers to visualise all the art works in their own homes.

In my art, I love to explore colour, line and shape in a free and abstract way. I have lots of ideas and themes and enjoy using rich colours and mixed media. Nature continues to be my biggest inspiration. Exploring and experimenting with my art works provides me with wonderful new experiences, keeping my passion alive.

I love using acrylic because it is so quick and easy with various impasto gels, modeling compounds and mixed media. At present I am using a lot of gold, silver and copper in my work in both paint and gold/silver leaf. I like to work in sets and often produce a suite of works at one time.

In this exhibition I have explored the law of attraction and surrounded myself with Chinese symbols for love, wealth, prosperity and good fortune. I have used rich jewel like colours, textured mediums and papers, fabric and gold leaf to decorate these images.

I have also developed an abstract series based on the Australian landscape using a painted layered approach over similar mixed mediums listed above.

Helen Kibble

I have always been passionate about colour and a keen observer of the designs the natural world produces.

Whilst early art classes included ‘Life Drawing’ at the Adelaide Central School of Art, and also studying a variety of mediums under such tutors as Bruce Vinal, Han Ning and Sylvia Preston, my painting production has been mainly in the last decade.

Currently, I produce mostly realistic works using a range of mediums and surfaces. Mediums include watercolour, pastel, acrylic and charcoal, and mixed media. Watercolour is a favourite because I love the possibilities and challenges of its fluid nature.

I enjoy a wide range of subject matter.

I have sold paintings at a variety of exhibitions including the Holdfast Bay Emerging Artists Exhibition (selling all I exhibited), the Cathedral Art Show, the Victor Harbor Rotary Art Show and a successful Solo Exhibition. I have also exhibited as part of the SALA Festival.

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