In 2001 the Danks Street arts complex opened in the then unfashionable Sydney suburb of Waterloo. Soon the neighbourhood was bristling with foodies, designer furniture outlets and high-rise apartments. In December 2016 the much-loved arts complex closed its doors to make way for yet another block of flats. Brenda May Gallery was one of the original Danks Street tenants. Her eponymous gallery is gone, but, after more than 30 years, Brenda May is still in business.
She currently represents Robert Boynes, Sybil Curtis, Todd Fuller, Ashleigh Garwood, James Guppy, Waratah Lahy, Melinda Le Guay, Al Munro, Carol Murphy, Mylyn Nguyen, Catherine O’Donnell, Leslie Oliver, Peter Tilley and Nicole Welch. Each artist will present one major work in the gallery’s inaugural show, Fourteen.
During her three decades as a gallerist, May has found that increasing numbers of people are eschewing a trip to the gallery in favour of viewing online. She’s keen to reverse this trend and is hoping to entice regular visitors into her new space with an easily accessible stockroom, seating, conversation and coffee, as well as a dynamic program of exhibitions including videos in her dedicated Black Box space, group shows by fresh talent and solo shows by her stable of artists.
And while many things have changed over the years, some have stayed the same. May remains dedicated to the potential of art. “I don’t necessarily believe that the artists we represent are going to change the course of history in Australia, but I do believe there is a contribution to be made. Otherwise I wouldn’t do it,” she says, adding, “I still look forward to work every day.”
Past meets present in Leyla Steven’s latest exhibition, now showing at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and co-curated by Artspace. The Australian-Balinese artists adopts a collaborative approach to restitution, scrutinising the systems of conservation and documentation we have inherited.
Developed in 2022 by Artback NT as part of Apmere Mparntwe—the Australian Ceramics Triennale— touring exhibition Clay on Country, showing now at New England Regional Art Museum, showcases the diversity of ceramics in the Central Desert.
About Face is a smart piece of marketing. The new book on portrait painting from Australia and New Zealand has a mission to change buyers’ minds about the field. But as Jane O’Sullivan discovers, any sales pitch wears thin if it’s repeated often enough, and the close attention to how portrait painting is received by the market means that other important conversations fade to the background.
Now showing at Home of the Arts (HOTA), the sophomore Gold Coast Triennial, Here and Now, brings together 42 contemporary artists to represent the depth and dynamism of the city’s artistic community.
A new event has arrived in Melbourne’s cultural calendar with the inauguration of the Melbourne Sculpture Biennale: an exhibition that aims to showcase the breadth and diversity of contemporary sculpture in Victoria.
With their iconic painted poker machines and installations, notably featured in the 2020 Biennale of Sydney, the Tennant Creek Brio are now taking over Melbourne with a new show at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art.
