THE DESIGN FILES FEATURE
Three Artists Celebrate The Natural World In A Tactile New Exhibition
Article by Christina Karras
Photography by Jacqui Turk
PUBLISHED 20 JULY 2022
An intriguing new exhibition brings together three artists from three distinctly different mediums in an expressive ‘dance of three’.
Intrigued by the power of ‘art as a universal language,’ Saint Cloche founder and curator Kitty Clark asked painter Minna Leunig, ceramicist Monique Robinson and sculptor Lana Launay to explore patterns and symbols in the world around us.
What evolved is an eclectic and tactile showcase inspired by nature dubbed Up-Side-Down, which opens at Saint Cloche’s Paddington gallery today!
Saint Cloche’s latest exhibition, Up-Side-Down, is inspired by ambigrams: art forms involving words that are readable from more than one perspective.
‘They work like visual illusions, revealing unexpected new messages with each amalgamation,’ says Saint Cloche founder and curator Kitty Clark. ‘With every exhibition, I strive to give art a unique voice and visual language.’
Kitty decided to use this open-ended concept as the foundation for a new group show. She approached artists Minna Leunig, Monique Robinson and Lana Launay, knowing each would bring something dynamic in their own medium that could ‘mirror the relationships within and around us.’
Despite the artists’ differing mediums of painting, ceramics and sculpture, they share a similar energy. While Minna’s abstract paintings depict playful and bold silhouettes of plants and animals, Monique’s tactile sculptures also tackles concepts of the natural world through her practice, LOCKERROOM.
‘Light and shadow comes across very strongly in both Minna and Monique’s works. Their unique mark-makings highlighted in the right light almost intensified the energy of their works,’ Kitty explains.
These themes prompted Kitty to reach out to sculptor and artisan Lana Launay, who works with sustainable and natural materials in her intricately handwoven objects of light. Up-Side-Down features Lana’s first sculptural works, where she experiments with shape, light, and scale within the formal context of interior life and its limitations.
Together, Minna, Monique and Lana’s work forms a poetic dance inspired by the times, the cyclical rhythms of life and nature, and an enduring serenity with an abundance of light and warmth.
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