SYDNEY.- The National Art School has today unveiled undo the day, a new exhibition curated by Gina Mobayed, showcasing work by 10 contemporary artists including Karen Black, Nathan Hawkes, Irene Hanenbergh, Ruth Hutchinson, Nabilah Nordin, Mel O’Callaghan, Tom Polo, Ronan Pirozzi, Jodie Whalen and Coen Young.
Presented across two floors of the NAS Gallery until 3 August 2024, the exhibition explores the human response to move towards the light when in darkness, and finding hope in times of doubt and change.
Curator Gina Mobayed says: “In darkness there is less definition and more uncertainty, there is an instinctual urge to move forward through both vision and feeling. We rely on light for orientation to mark the distance between what we desire, what we are looking for, and sometimes what we know. A flicker or a spark can be enough to offer hope, even if blurred and ambiguous”.
The ground floor of the exhibition represents a feeling of darkness, featuring minimal, abstract and reflective works that play with techniques of distortion and blur. These include two new large-scale paintings by NAS alumni Coen Young that mirror, warp and disorientate the viewer. A recent glass painting using rare metals, minerals and pigments by artist Mel O’Callaghan is displayed alongside her video work To the end, filmed at Le Mont-Saint-Michel, France. Irene Hanenbergh presents a series of intimately scaled paintings depicting the natural sublime, alongside Ruth Hutchinson’s intricate miniature sculptural works, and 2023 NAS graduate Ronan Pirozzi’s dark steel paintings that transform experiences of personal trauma into a poetic visual language.
Moving upstairs, audiences enter a space filled with works embracing light, colour and figuration. At one end of the gallery, a large-scale video projection by artist Jodie Whalen mimics the light of sunrise and sunset, creating a liminal space for introspection. Human figures and gestures are repeated across the gallery, in the bright abstract paintings by Karen Black, delving into radical care and gentleness, as well as in the neon light installation by Tom Polo, exploring personal encounters and emotional exchange. Large gestural paintings by NAS alumni Nathan Hawkes use experimental drawing as a method of capturing sensations encountered in daily life, and playful totemic sculptural works by Nabilah Nordin disrupt conceived ideas of material hierarchies by rendering improvised forms in bronze.
Steven Alderton, CEO, National Art School, said: “NAS is thrilled to present this exhibition of exceptional artists, curated by Gina Mobayed, a visionary arts specialist who emphasises the importance of connection between artists, and audiences within her work, and who we have been looking forward to working with in the Gallery. We are proud to showcase the works of NAS alumni Ronan Pirozzi (2023), Coen Young (2009), and Nathan Hawkes (2007), all making great strides within the Australian contemporary art scene, alongside one of our esteemed senior lecturers Karen Black. This exhibition showcases the work of exceptional contemporary artists at various stages in their careers, to our students and visitors.”
Curator Gina Mobayed said: “I have been following many of these artists throughout my career, so for me this exhibition is an important opportunity to bring them into dialogue with one another, as well as invite audiences into a close experience of their works. I hope the students of National Art School, and all visitors to the gallery will take inspiration from these incredible contemporary artists, and feel moved by an exhibition that considers the ways we listen and connect to one another.
