What a night.
Saint Cloche was filled to the brim on a balmy Sydney evening as we celebrated the opening of Daimon Downey’s latest solo exhibition, Absurdists. Guests gathered throughout the gallery to experience Downey’s vibrant new body of work, while the immersive clay stations invited everyone to poke, mould and pinch — embracing the playful, tactile spirit of the exhibition.
We were honoured to have Steven Alderton join us as special guest speaker. Drawing on his decades of experience across institutions including the National Art School and the Australian Museum, Alderton shared thoughtful reflections on Downey’s work and the philosophy behind the exhibition.
As he writes in his accompanying essay:
“Happiness can be an agenda, peace can be declared and defended, and absurdity itself is freedom because it releases us from the tyranny of needing ultimate meaning. The geometric forms which structure both landscapes and figures create spaces where joy can exist between the edges, not despite the absurd but because of it.”
A special thank you to our event sponsors and the fabulous band Clay Weston for the incredible live music that carried the evening.
Absurdists is on view until 22 March 2026
