Daniel Thomas : Newspaper writings

"TELEGRAPH" Sydney, N.S.W. r L_ A, ft' The Week in Art by Daniel Thomas 6 6 A GREAT month for the erog en es," said Bob ri Hughes when he heard that Charles Reddington's show was coming to the Hungry Horse Gallery. The word was his own invention; it means the Love People, or Lover Boys might be nearer to it. Besides Reddington the reference was to Whiteley, now showing his erotic ab- stracts at the Kornon Gal- lery, and to Hughes him- self. A month or so ago Hodgkinson's ambiguous tree t ru nks-cum-land- scapes- cum - torsos touched on the same regions. Olsen and the Imitation r Realists have always thrown in a bit of sex (along with the kitchen sink and everything else that signifies totality of experience) though it has never become the domin- ant theme as with White- ley and Hughes. No doubt this is our big- gest wave of sex in art Since Norman Lindsay's day 50 years ago. But Reddington in this first Sydney one-man show cannot be grouped so easily with the others as we might have assumed after seeing the single picture "Shoshan Celenral,- "MOSCOW" by Dick Watkins -Young Painters' Exhibition at Farmers. iiiiiii iiiiiiiii WHAT'S ON iiiiiii iiiii iiiiiii EmANI/EIS.: TODAY AND NEXT WICK. A GOWN FdSW-Spemai exhibition. Acoulitlone for 190 g. rigor NOTE Winter owing tome, 4.30 p.m. NEXT WEEK. Marlon Rest-Jewellery. by Emanuele Salt. Emanuele Raft. one of Renew Neree.-Charlee Redd.nbton. Clune.-Eiwyn Lynn. the very promising young homen.-anti Whiteley. ersow.e.-Contenbeerary Art Society; Young Pelnters' Cornets, painters at work In Syd- F ney is exhibiting ewel- oomnian.-AustraPan CenNmporary Figurative Art Wales Nessaa.--Lile and Times of PurcRI and Handel. a lery at Marion Beat 153 Von Iterteuels. Newustle -Sewn Sydney Potter. Queen Street, Woollahra. Macquarny-Lloyd Row. Twessn drawines. In silver, occasionally OPENING WEDNESDAY. , ,,,,,CLOSING MONDAY. with some gold, or copper, DMId 11011.', FInllne,or a stone. it Is very much ear,, Stern.-Ehtbeth Balt. -41111Mosass painter's jewellery. It is unscuiptural and the plaques and rin,ts turn out to be highly shrunken versions, In relief, of his familiar paintings MORI- cally transmuted into precious materials. This small exhibition Is brilliantly displayed. Like the Reddington show no one could fail to enjoy it. YOUNG PAINTERS At Farmers the Con- temporary Art Society has its first young painters' competitions. The 23 and under section was won by John Firth-Smith with "Bente Boyzie" hot from 'his Hungry Horse exhibi- tion, and a fairly obvious choice. The section for painters aged 24 to 30 was won by Cohn Lanceley with "Prin- cess Excelsior. Magnifi- cent." Here his familiar Lion" which I Illustrated Imitation Realist aasem- from the CAS exhibition blase has retreated to leave last year. an area of quite nice paint This six-foot canvas is all on its own, in which now visible again at the red mouth and flaring sma- Hungry Horse and remains tril images (like Albert the only one clearly to Tucker's "Night Images") suggest the human figure. assert themselves. The others are as often It is an affectionate abstract landscapes as satire on a Royal progress, figure subjects. In some with Union Jacks, collage are found the very same of crimsono velvet,ftarnished Adelaide pinky orange colors of the and piles Hills where he pearls. Lanceley has clean - has lived for some time: ed up his cosy messes of in most is found the in- associations, but Dick Wat- tensely lyrical quality of kins has ventured further than anyone in the clean - his particular sheltered in'ihis is ease the most Coromandel Valley (S. T. [PP P GM was there as a very young man 120 years ago). interesting painting on With its trickling streams view. It has taken the irn- and delicate fruit and manse risk of crossing the olive orchards 66 well as border into non -art in gum trees it is an environ- hope of achieving the ment perilously close to purest aesthetic statement. those clean, coal cigarette The competition does not saudnvleirgthistements in dappled look very different from most other art prizes, Reddington is not afraid which proves that most of sweetness. either in painters over 30 do not secret intimate landscapes. bother to enter compell- er in sensuous suggesUons hails at all. It also sur- of glowing flesh. rhingly reveals that Sax - The sweetness verges on Fon. Boileau, Cec Knight ecstasy. for these pictures and John Talbert who are not off-beat like seem to have been with Whiteley's and Hughes'. us for years, are not yet They have firm straight - over 30. forward structure, coherent But besides stimulating space, and the most power- a little extra experiment It fur of rhythms which re- has brought a few new main strictly inside the names to light, and this picture. At their best Is one of the really good they orchestrate them- things about competitions. selves into the condition Barry Grizzard for .in - of jazz - they really stance, just back from swing. England, with a high - One more winner in the keyed lyrical abstraction Hungry Horse's remark- (only half a dozen of the able stable. Reddington is 100 pictures are figurative), 34, came to Australia from or Pierre Cornu, just America in 1959, and has arrived from France. with been selected to compete a quiet, orderly remints- in the Rubinstein Scholar- cence of cubism, or Les .hip this year. ' Byron sending a dark spreading texture painting from Ooulburn. Pictures which confirm already recognised promise are Christine Herman's "Moment of Realization," P. Boileau's "One Even- ing," R. Harpur's pictures (though they are both two years old), H. Milgate's, Valerie Strong's, Leonora Howlett's, and Ian van Wierengen's "For the Gods" (at least that is the title it had last week in another exhibition). Hughes, Raft and D. Rose of course are already established painters. It is also interesting to see that although the majority of the under- 24s must be students at Tech. there are only two or three examples of the East Sydney style. All the students seem to be busy out of hours with collage and blow torch. DOMINION' As usual at the Dominion the first impression, a wall of William Drew, is the worst. And a.s usual, there are many good things un- catalogued In their mixed exhibition of figurative painting. A ' large 1962 Nolan, "Kelly and Horse," a 1953 - Kalil "Head." two early Lyrnburners. a Cedric Flower "Terrace," Digby's Traviata costume designs, Wakelin's landscapes are all good of their kind.