Generations of Artists in Blacktown City Art Exhibition
Blacktown City Art Exhibition now on until October 18
The 2008 Blacktown City Art Exhibition is increasingly a family affair. This year many children and parents are exhibited side-by-side showcasing the burgeoning creativity of families from the Blacktown City region.
Sisters Elinor, age 11, and Brigitte, age 14, entered the 'Children and Young Artists' section of the competition which is themed 'Trees for Life'. Elinor's beautiful picture book includes detailed watercolour paintings of ten trees, whilst Brigitte's watercolour painting of a country landscape reminisces about a recent family holiday to Gundagai.
Their mother Genevieve is also a finalist in the sculpture section of the exhibition. Her work 'Venus of Hard Candy' is an assemblage of objects found in the family home. A freebie toy character from a fast food chain give-away is re-painted with an apron to represent Genevieve as the working mother of the family. Miniature bills spill from the toy's mouth representing the pressures of being a working mother in our contemporary society.
Genevieve is ecstatic that her and both her children are featured in the exhibition and says that "Art competitions push you to achieve more and do your best work, whilst allowing you to be truly experimental".
Mother and daughter, Rebecca and Imojjen (age 7), are also both in the exhibition. Imojjen's artwork 'Tree in a nest' is an intricate tree made from newspaper sitting in a nest with small colourful birds made from fimo throughout the branches.
Her mother Rebecca's sculpture "Global Warmth Item 1" features a normally dark and grotty muffler turned into a beautiful white artwork covered in fluffy crochet, "it is the exact opposite of what you think a muffler is" says Rebecca. The work is a wordplay on the term "global warmth" and is about how we convince ourselves of things by the way they are explained.
Both the 'Children and Young Artists' artworks and the main competition are on exhibition until 18 October 2008.
For artist interviews, enquiries and images contact: Bianca Clark - (02) 9839 6439 or Rebecca Tromp (02) 9839 6409, Public Relations, Blacktown City Council.