18/2016 - Sculptures by the Sea - An abundance of Cloudettes

I think Mum's new word will catch on! When going through my photos there was definitely a section of  intense cloudette action :) Kakashi by Zilvinas Kempinas was up with there with my favourite pieces in the exhibition (I am aware I have said that a lot...). Such magic made from such simple parts - snow posts and bird ribbons.

 

I know my posts have been a lot longer than usual over Sculptures by the Sea but man, if I were to break it out to one post per sculpture I'd still be going  at Christmas! I'm gonna aim to keep it to one more post after this one... Below 'A Burden' by NSW artists Suzie Bleach and Andrew Townsend surveys the beach.

Without a Beginning and With No End by Nyland and Beale uses the wind to create a new drawing every 24 hours. Its somewhat mesmerizing to watch as the wind dances, twists and swipes the charcoal over the paper...

I think 'Bubble' by Sydney based multi-media artists Pamela Lee Brenner and Johannes Muljana would look even better lit up at night time... a shame I doubt I'll get back for that.

17/2016 - Sculptures by the Sea - Manscape, Der Traktor and Sea Sponges

 

As a person who enjoys textures, Manscape by WA artist Tony Davis is a favourite. I was pretty pleased to catch a shot without any children clambering around inside of this one (although that does also add a certain charm!)

You just know that the beautiful bright colours of Austrian artist Markus Hoder's Der Traktor would draw me like a magnet! Apparently this piece is in response to the WA mining industry, although I'm not quite sure what it's trying to say?

I couldn't resist taking a quick snap of this little munchkin as she gazed up at Karen Macher Nesta's Seas Sponges. The next moment she started throwing sand at them... I guess thats what she thought of that!'

16/2016 - Scupltures by the Sea - Dust and The Book Cave

Spotted through the trees from above you don't quite get a proper sense of the size of 'Dust' by WA Artist Norton Flavel. Known for his over-sized sculptures (who could forget the giant goon bag a couple of years back??), this years piece looks a whole lot more impressive close up. As with his piece 'Lucky Country' from last year I was impressed with the size of the main body of the piece being held up by a relatively slim base. Very clever.

 

 

Those of you who follow Mum's blog have already seen this piece. Interesting enough to coax her down to the sand despite her sore knee and strict physio instructions, the Book Cave by Juliet Lea (another WA artist!) was made up of a variety of great (and not so great) titles - although I suspect I've read less of them than Mum has. I loved the snap below with a little face poking out of the cave. There were a few interactive pieces this year which is always fun, especially for the kids (or the young at heart!).

15/2016 - Scuptures by the Sea - Sømærke

So... I've been missing for a while now.... To be honest I actually haven't been taking many photos lately. Lets call it a brief lack of inspiration. But today I finally got up super early in the morning and picked up the camera to go explore this year's Sculptures by the Sea in Cottesloe. So now I have roughly a billion photos for you!

Starting with Sømærke by Berlin based architecture collective KWY, Ricardo Gomes and Ben Allen with Lise Kassow.  I'm always drawn to wooden sculptures - I think I just like the texture and grain in wood - always interesting when you get up close. This was the first sculpture that struck me as I approached the beach and I enjoyed the different perspectives you get from different angles.

 

 

 

Sixty Nine - Childhood - Harbour

In my coverage of the Sculptures by the Sea I've definitely kept my favourite until last. Childhood - Harbour by Chen Wenling is just so joyful! Look at that smile! I'm sorry that I've been pretty much absent this week - I've been knocked out with a truly gross cold/sinusitis/human snot machine bug all week. But I think I'm on the mend now so I'm looking forward to looking at all of your blogs over the weekend!

 

Sixty Eight - For the Love of Sculpture

'For the Love of Sculpture' by WA artist Clare Davenhall was inspired by the simplicity of a bubble. An interactive sculpture, it gently spins showing off the ever changing iridescent colours (green to blue to purple). When checked out up close one finds interesting little bits of information about a few Australian loves... Which is all well and good - but to me it kinda looks like a big ol' dragon egg...

Sixty Seven - A Series of Chubby Dudes

I feel like I'm spending forever on the Sculptures by the Sea... So I've decided to do a bit of a combo post with a number of different sculptures, and naturally I felt that three chubby figures would work well with each other. Two of these I think are adorable. One might give me nightmares. Guess which is which!

 'Is This A Step Forward?' by Keld Moseholm (Denmark)

 'The ascetic' by Naidee Changmoh (Thailand)

 'Babies Three Pieces' by David Cerny (Czech Republic)

 

Sixty Six - House of Mirrors

The House of Mirrors by NEON is 'a reinterpretation of the classic Australian Beach Hut, an architectural typology that traditionally sits boldly and brightly in the landscape, blocking out the exterior environment whilst proclaiming its own presence'.

The House of Mirrors challenges this approach by disappearing into the natural landscape. Instead of blocking nature out, it welcomes and amplifies it. It is just one of the interactive sculptures featured in the sculptures by the sea with people being able to enter the 'hut' - its a little like being surrounded by very sandy funhouse mirrors in there though.

 

Sixty Five - Mi No 5 - Fabulous Flamingoes

 

What fun these flamingoes are! From a distance I actually thought these were made of some kind of velvet or something, but up close they turned out to be a fine red metal mesh. I mostly caught these guys from close up but if you want to see some wider shots check out Mum's post here.

Sixty Four - Over, Under, Through, Around

The next piece on my close up tour of the Sculptures by the Sea is Over Under Through Around by Peter Zappa. Peter is a WA artist whose works explore the aesthetics of drawing. He uses sculpture as the medium to create three dimensional drawings or ‘drawings in space’. He says that "In transposing a drawing from paper into a metal sculpture, the work defies definitions as the object that is seen by the viewer will depend on where you view the work." My favourite angle on this particular piece was straight down this spiralling diamond shape, I loved that the metal looks almost flecked with glitter when you get up close.

Sixty Three - Hearts in Paradise

I do love Ayad Alqaragholli's work. His sculptures always have such movement and such an elegant and joyful feel to them. This one, entitled 'Hearts in Paradise represents love and happiness and I think it does a pretty great job of portraying that. The chair is also surprisingly comfy!