Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 4 : Presscuttings, November 1967 - June 1972

lri11Nne, works tradition French art that defy S IXTEEN years have 1mssed since we had an exhibition of t're111,h Painting. Much has ha11pe11ed since. "Three Trends In C1_rntem1 1 orarY French Art," now on view at our Stale Gallery, offers a highly ,·arlcd selection of works executed mainly I II the last three years or so. wJ~: lncl~~~d n~:tbf~,;{,~~! Delaunay and :\lltrc~I Duchamp. The well <1oc1m1e11t1•cl catalogue divide. the ux- hlbltlon Into Art and Science. Art and Nature. and Art and Society. •rhe works listed under any ol these headings are often widely divergent. or~ceul~~~tlon:~dc•~:f.~~:: only apply to part of the exhibits. The rest nre creations which defy these categories. New art form11, new material•, new uperlenceo. on~ to 1 ~culp,_turetr;~Ytt~~~ mnterlal. but not con• ,•ontlonal. are the group sculptures by Bonnal, whu carves from rugged, splint.cry wood. forms that sing or nature nnd belong In nature's setting, Sch~fe~pool~aft~.::~:m\~ metal sculpture which Is aimed at a new technical• scientific civilisation. (Schol• fer Is but In his ~lgantlc structures In an urban en– vironment). 'Marriage' Then we ha1•e a happy II''lrrlage or sculpture and p..lntln1< In the marvellous Image "NANA" by Niki de Saint Pballe - and such fun ! llgtt n~-z ~~1~ 1 ~i,~y1~:ff to the creation of such enormous bulbous volumes, balancing on a narrow base. Can one stlll call "sculptures" delicate con– structions with reflecting or t:":~~fi,;:'J'\1gh'l'i:.~~~~( 1n 1 l:i contlnuow motion. and to be appreciated together with the Incessantly changing Images of their own re• ~!~~~orl'ow':.'i,kW~dows? (Du Creations that Involve the spectator In a new way by counting on hts active phys- = ~~;i;lg<ttl~~ar:~~-late Just taking a small step seta Into a virtual time– motion a "still·• like the Soto. Breathing on a Du Pare seta the Images n,aJ. ly racing, Arman has broken with ~:1!ff:1t;;.ffl~ ~ 1lw nrt or palntln g In c-lus– :.H·nl trrm:,, lle ,·011trols t he rtcddent. of !,{Old Ink flow– lnl( bet WCCll plexi~lnss sheet.., which crentc arnbi~u– ous space effects. The re– sult is hl~hly aesthetic. Palntlni; on canl'as or paper ls not made ob&0lete by new material& and com• po.site crcntlon5. Fu1t her SurreBllsm and Lyrical Ab&tractlon can co– exist wlvh cool ~eomct.rlcal abst.ractlon. optlca.l art. and the various kinds or a New Realism. I wish I knew About Art •.• ANYTHING about Art. But, artls• tically, I'm abysmally Ignorant. Maybe it \\'Oulrt h~ brl– t'l' if l wrn• l11:1r1 lculu1.c 11 the s11b_ic-c·1. too. tratrs the c•olorful com– plriil ,. or llle 1•rcstnl urt ,t•c·11r rallu·r than run• f"r nt ratl111.: 1111 a ,•,mrorm– il1· tu our trend. The wurks Ihttl r wnulcl st•lect nre not, or one klt1d ei ther. Tht'Y nrc bv Soul– aJ:eS I his N,wembcr. l!J1i7 1, \ra.-..areh, Mid1au.i Saint l'halle · 1 Nnna, . Ou Pare, Soto. llartunK and ltenr•th. I make no attem1iL nL de• finin g the "Frenchness·• o! Contemporary French art. For one thing. too mariy arLlsts originate from other lands. II Is enou~h that rarl• It Rllll a fm·UK, a J1lace that pro,•ld.. a cultural dlrnale wh,•r• the art, can flourt"h and where artltb want to lh•e. People who wnnL to sec ~)11:1 ~1, ~~;~l;~Hnhr1.:b~~:~~l\l~~~ been allotted the sl1ortest perlod - t.wo wrcks, Three days have gone nlreudy, lrlslNne, .. ~ Yours -sincerely l 1110.Sllr :1111. But thl~ tlmr nt. Olis f':,..:l1Jbll 1011. I frll 'l'ht' J111 pact. .'\nd Isn't. thul wh ul Art l.o; SIIIJJ)OSN I lo do - to mnkc ro11 F1•rl'.' l\1.t:~l~h ~~-t. conlempornry Jt.·s free. with woocl , plaslt•r ~ill<l ob{!;;·;·\~,jrc1 ...,·, Tlwy·rc n ~r.orc or so of cl11ldrrri's toys or t lw 1 n>c you would buy l11 a chnln store and rang(• from clc– phnnl s to trucks to cloth;. And rlc;ht, now I ~I Ill fr••l so 1iµl11h c:1drcl :1h{)III 111Y art isliC nrl\'Plllllr(' I rnn only urp,c 111:,1. If ·011'rr onr or 111,· 111nl>. you, 100. drop 111 · :1 L 1111• Q11rcr1slu11rt Art. Gulh•ry to • cw the ctirrrnl tl i.s- ParlicuJurlv T rom- mr nd to youf' Rtt.c111HHl . . T II F. I.AIIC.E wn ll pl"'e r ntlllert Ulnrk Anrt \\lllltc C'n:Hlc and <l••– ~crihc<I m 1 he ca lalo~uc n.c; '"A painted as cmblngc Thrrr'11 no prh.1• ror iur~in,t \\·hat thl!ii ls . , . r1nrl no way or flndln~ n11f . tl's calalo~uetl a." "rnamrllrd aS!iil'mhla,:e" with pol~·cster n,etal obJecb. II I• hrl~hl rt•tl, The photo,:rnphcr SJK'culatcd lhd It " 'as part of a drcompres!llon chan,ber, PAISTINC. •well that'!ili how !I's ll<c.1 1•d _: s1111ply ns Ih at: rnayb,• it w:1,; hpr:rns,• It.~ rn•ator en1lrt11·1 f111cl nn aclcq11:1tc t111t-· 1 1. A11~r\\ fi)'. 11 ·, N11111hrr :m nnd II look!'. likr a widr tl::;:~ l~~~:~.~ ~;~~:~r\~~1 1 ~,~~~~~ 011 n purph•-bluc rol!unn. NAl\'t: (;1111. - n 1>11- xorn wrndt who npprnr!'-i lo br •-11lfrrin~ from :1 stnh WOl!lld i11 tlw h•II b1 C!"l~t whirl! b ~plot..Jird wnh f'l,, v-cnlnrNI pa1111. 8hr 1111s hr,•11 111;,fl1• 1rom t•J!~ ·"lwll.o.::. ov-..1,•r '-ll1•11-. a n cl h I t s · or brol:r 11 Cl'ClC~f'ry. Yn1fll !111'1 hrr - nnd ot hrr 1•tp1:1lly Jnr::r n11CI r u 1ra1,,·111g pH!<'t'!-i - In t 111• :-.rr1 ion -,uh-hendcd Pr1•urlin11 Nnl urr. Tlwn tllcrc·s the c:ulr of mclul squares. 11\ :--imply t•atnloguecl ns ··L 1 t1t'll l n lo~Uf'd''. Unlike rn;111~· of t 11c c:-.:hibits, it ch)l' ...Jl°L Lu•nr n llOlkc Do :":o! Totll'h, I 1rnt out a rln,tt.r and ia ,·r it a 1:c-ntlt• prod. l'l'S, It tlnklt-tl. ,lust like metal "ind c·h lnws. ·"'· 11cl. j11:-.t bf'forc you 11111-..;h I lit• clrc llll, you'll }ri:g~(lI ~na'b1:~1~~~r~'o';~!;~· -.;111•rmsed t.o push the rtrnpr rLsld1• so dorn hes– ll:itr. Yma'II he re\\'Rtl.lN! by 1h e si$!11t or nn obJccL t h a l ll)Ok~ like nothing so nrnch :,s n multi-colored Ea:-.IC'r ei-:g. Thrn•·:-. much, much 11uirr, of r·oursr. And 110- tahly Ihe psychedelic col– nn •ct pnpu•r mnrhe figure f!1\·r1 1 pr1d(• of space. She h1HI tn bP, Shr 's nhouL fll1 . 11111 nnrt n111wnr!i 10 l>C prrg nnnt f0tl' nncl nft.. llc•r n:HtW is Ell~abNh , Jn 1l,r• ,·1Haloi-:w~ you'll nl:,o f111 d till~ quo1c· . , ~ . "Tl1f'rc 1,-. no quf'slion of f ' . 1 • •11<ting proplr· mnc1 . . :· , /\s r :-.11 irl. I nm art.I:-.! le~ · :illy il!nnrnnt. 1 nm now IH"lt q u ilt• :-.11r1• whl"t hrr 1cnorn Ut t> I!-. bliss hut, f111.u11l:,.· Pnou ~h . on one po1111 1·111 tf•rluln. Quite. It 's 1 hat whnt J suw will :-.Lay wit h me for quite -"0111C time.