Kristen Brownfield, Morning, 2024, digital print of analogue photograph. Courtesy of the artist.
remember the blue sky
4 May – 8 June, 2024
Tessa Beale, Kristen Brownfield, Bina Butcher, Sophie La Maitre, Sophie G Nixon
“A painting is not a picture of an experience; it is an experience.” — Mark Rothko 1
remember the blue sky considers art as a vehicle for mindfulness in both its making and its viewing. Mindfulness is about being present and fully engaged in the moment and observing thoughts, emotions, and senses in a non-judgmental way. It recognises the absence of rigid boundaries between an individual and their surrounding environment. By immersing oneself in nature and participating in the arts, one can cultivate mindfulness in daily life; improving how one feels and reducing stress.
This exhibition brings together five local artists who incorporate elements of mindfulness into their art practices. Through painting, drawing, print, sculpture, and video, these artists mindfully engage with the urban green spaces that surround them and the natural origins of the resources they use in everyday life.
You are invited to slow down, take a breath, and let these artworks guide you into the present moment.
Opening event Friday, 3 May | 6 – 8pm
Exhibition runs till Saturday, 8 June.
Gallery hours:
Monday – Friday, 10am – 4pm
Saturdays, 10am – 2pm
Footnote
1 Dorothy Seiberling, “The Varied Art of Four Pioneers,” LIFE, November 16, 1959, p.82
Public program
psithurism (sunrise) | Listening session with Kristen Brownfield
Saturday, 18 May | 9:00 – 10:00 am
Artist Kristen Brownfield invites you to join her in the gallery for tea or coffee while she shares a sound recording of the trees in her yard in her work psithurism (sunrise). While you are listening you might like to draw, read, journal, or just tune into the sound.
‘Psithurism’ is the word for the sound of leaves rustling in the wind. It derives from the Greek word ‘psythuros’, which means ‘whispering’. I enjoy this sound a lot, and it has consumed me as I’ve made the work for this show and contemplated my relationship with the trees in our yard. The sound brings me calm and a sense of wonder, telling me the trees are there. It fills our house, my ears, and my entire body. It is hard to imagine life without the sound, without the trees. I began recording the sound as I read in the hammock or went about other activities at home. The audio became something I’d listen back to in the studio, a small sample of the environment and a feeling that I could revisit anywhere — Kristen Brownfield
Mindful matters
Thursday, May 16 | 6.30 – 7.30pm
Panel discussion. Details TBC
