WELCOME TO PARADISO, A BEAUTIFUL DREAM.
PARADISO, our end of year show was opened this week by Clare Press, Vogue’s Sustainability Editor and recipient of NSW Government’s Green Globe Award 2019’s Sustainability Champion Award. She spoke about ‘Dream’s’ being a key thread behind the concept of PARADISO.
“That word feels especially poignant at this moment in history where dreams and hopes for a cleaner, greener, more socially just, inclusive and restorative future are of the utmost importance, as we look ahead to the 2020s. The end of one year, means the beginning of another and as we gather here, surrounded by beauty and inspiration, and the word Paradiso – or Dante’s heaven – hovers in our collective imaginations, it is not lost on me that much of the state of NSW is on fire. Less Paradiso than Inferno. We are living through a climate emergency, governed by administrations that deny it. I don’t want to get gloomy on you, because this is a celebration of possibility, and of the glorious potential and power of the human spirit – and of art – to transcend the toughest of times, and to show us a pathway forward. When I look around me, I see human endeavour at its brightest, employed in the act of positive creation, challenging us to examine our relationships to each other and to the world around us. I was struck by how many of the artists are drawn to Nature, and the way we interact with the Earth …For now, I simply invite you to enjoy the magic. To dream big, to dream bold, to speak out, and to demand better outcomes for our Natural world.”
– Clare Press
We at Saint Cloche will look forward to the New Year, joining with others in our community to bring about the changes required so that we all become better guardians of the planet and the other species we share it with. The PARADISO message is about working together for the future we want to see our children and nature thrive in.
PARADISO is a month long exhibition that celebrates the diverse and creative talents of 14 local and international emerging artists – Bridgette McNab, Claire Johnson, Daniel Barreto (Mexico), Dan Withey, Elise Cameron-Smith, Emma Bartik, Gemma Avery, Ileigh Hellier, Lauren Eaton, Luca Lettieri, Matilda Kubany-Deane, Sean Wadey, Somchai Charoen, Yusuke Abe (Japan).