The Balnaves Foundation, in collaboration with the National Gallery of Australia (NGA), presents ‘Balnaves Contemporary Intervention Series’ – a commissioned annual series of intervention art by Australian contemporary artists, challenging them to reinterpret familiar locations and reimagine the concept of what a gallery can be. A central aspect of the NGA’s renewed focus on contemporary art practice; these interventions will engage and excite as art experiences transform spaces throughout the gallery.
The program will launch on Friday 4 May 2018 with ‘Maze’: large-scale disruptive artworks by Sarah Contos, as well as virtual reality (VR) by Jess Johnson and Simon Ward.
Sarah Contos, work in progress for ‘Balnaves Contemporary Intervention Series’, February 2018. Courtesy the artist; Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney and STATION, Melbourne
‘By installing work in unexpected spaces as Contos does, or reconceiving of space itself as malleable and full of ‘portals’ as Johnson and Ward have, these artists are creating works that will alter the atmosphere of the NGA, and the way our audiences explore its iconic architectural interiors,’ said Jaklyn Babington, Senior Curator of Contemporary Art.
A huge suspension work by Contos will dominate the NGA Foyer with 1980s nostalgic flavour and 1920s flair, while Jess Johnson and Simon Ward create the VR interactive world for the national collection in the Contemporary Galleries.
Contos suggests her installation ‘has a 1980s nostalgic flavour and a 1920s fervour. The vibe is… an overfilled raspberry coke slushy… looking backwards at a projector in a movie theatre… heavily sequinned pyjamas… a crushed can in the gutter.’
Be bombarded by decadent mobiles dripping from the ceiling. Discover characters and props collaged with iridescent, suspended textiles and fleshy sculptural forms. Throw caution to the wind and lose yourself within Contos’ dramatic and provocative ‘motion picture’.
Jess Johnson and Simon Ward, working drawing for ‘Terminus’, 2018. Courtesy the artists, Darren Knight Gallery, Sydney, Ivan Anthony Gallery, Auckland and Jack Hanley Gallery, New York
Jess Johnson and Simon Ward’s Terminus is an immersive ‘world within a world’ where dimensional realities exist in both physical and virtual space. The two artists reimagine Johnson’s densely layered 2D artworks as hypnotic animated video and unique virtual reality experiences.
‘It’s the most ambitious work we’ve ever undertaken,’ said artist Jess Johnson. ‘Never before have we had the space or resources to create this sort of guided, sequential journey with multiple VR experiences.’
Positioned within an elaborate floor map, five virtual reality stations act as portals into five different realms. Take a journey through a wormhole into worlds where the connections between language, science fiction, culture and technology are explored.
