The COFA Blog

Michael Esson, Outside In. Image Courtesy of Michael Esson

When: Tue, 4 Aug, ‘09
Where: College of Fine Arts, cnr Oxford Street and Greens Road, lecture theatre: EGO2, 6:00 pm

The iCinema Centre has been selected as a 2009 Australian Museum Eureka Prize finalist for its AVIE and iDOME projects for Research by an Interdisciplinary Team. Established in 1990, the annually presented Australian Museum Eureka Prizes are Australia’s most comprehensive national science awards, rewarding outstanding achievements in science and science promotion/communication. “This is a first for the Art and Design sector ” said COFA Dean, Professor Ian Howard.

AVIE and iDOME are unique developments that represent collaborative research between the Faculties of COFA and Engineering and have provided the foundation for many other highly successful iCinema research projects.  T_Visionarium, PLACE-Hampi and Conversations@ the Studio, have been exhibited at ZKM Karlsruhe, Lille Festival, Biennial of Seville, eARTS Shanghai, the Immigration Museum, Melbourne and Powerhouse Museum, Sydney. AVIE  and iDOME have been adopted for large scale commercialization by  the mining health and safety training sector.

Winners of the premier national Science Award will be announced at a gala award dinner in Sydney on Tuesday 18 August at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park, organised by the Australian Museum and its 26 partners and sponsors.

To view the News @ UNSW article on iCinema and Eureka, please visit: http://www.newspaper.unsw.edu.au/text/stories/index.htm

Quarterbred is a three year old independent artist run initiative, and resident company at pact space, supporting and presenting hybrid arts projects. Quarterbred is directed by seven emerging artists, including COFA graduates Kate Blackmore, Emma Elizabeth Ramsay and Diana Smith. Quarterbred encourages cross-pollination and experimentation through offering residencies and events at pact theatre through an open application process and by curating diverse projects throughout Sydney.

Quarterbread also curate and produce the Tiny Stadiums festival, presented by PACT. Early March 2010 the second Tiny Stadiums festival will launch. The festival aims to include a season of two performance/ live works at PACT theatre, a video library, a rooftop cinema, artist talks, a launch party and a weekend of site-specific live and visual artworks in the Erskineville village.

If you would like to be involved in the Tiny Stadiums festival, contact Quarterbread. For more information please visit:
http://quarterbred.blogspot.com/

Hugh Marchant, Hugh, 2009, digital moving image with audio

COFA time-based art student, Hugh Marchant, has won the National Youth Self Portrait Prize with an unusual moving image with sound. Influenced by the American experimental sound artist Alvin Lucier, Marchant’s self portrait has been created by re-filming footage played on a television screen, transforming his original image into what he describes as ‘a fingerprint or a zebra pattern’ of an indistinct face.

“I created this work using high definition video footage that was played from one camera connected to an LCD TV while being filmed in high definition video on another camera. Sound was recorded from speakers and an amplifier using a shotgun microphone and a flash-card recording device. Then the cameras were switched and the recorded footage was played through the television and filmed again. This was repeated up to 20 times until the video looked similar to a fingerprint or a zebra pattern.”- Hugh Marchant

A selection of entries in the National Youth Self Portrait Prize 2009 will be on display at the National Portrait Gallery from 23 July to 13 September 2009, with an online exhibition of all finalists, including COFA graduate Anna Pogossova’s work, is accessible from here: http://www.portrait.gov.au/site/exhibition_subsite_nyspp09_5.php.

An annual event, the National Youth Self Portrait Prize seeks to encourage young people to embrace self portraiture and its expressive possibilities. Sponsored by the Australian decorative Fine Arts Association (ADFAS) and the Tallis Foundation, a $10000 prize is offered for the most outstanding self portrait. The National Youth Self Portrait Prize is in its second year.

For more information and to view Hugh Marchant’s full piece, please visit: http://www.portrait.gov.au/site/exhibition_subsite_nyspp09_4.php.

What: National Youth Self Portrait Prize 2009
When: 23 July to 13 September 2009
Where: National Portrait Gallery in Canberra

Text amended from National Portrait Gallery website by Helena Bezzina

Todd McMillan, swim 4 (from the series ague) 2009 c type photograph 131.67 x 87.78cm Edition of 5 + 2AP Photograph by Michael Moran

Opening on Thursday the 30th of July at GRANTPIRRIE is artist and COFA graduate, Todd McMillans’, video trilogy titled Ague. As the title of the exhibition suggests in a sideways manner, the videos depict a shivering and scantily clad McMillan unsuccessfully attempting to swim the English Channel. Video one, called Preparation, has McMillan, wearing black budgie smugglers, encasing his body in lots and lots of vaseline. Video two, Swim, shows an arm and head belonging to McMillan in a yellow bathing cap swimming with all of his might trying to cross the Channel to France. Video three, Boat, shows McMillan giving up and climbing to his safety on a boat, all in sight of the shore from where he started his journey.
McMillan’s attempt is a pretty fair to average effort, of someone of fair to average sporting ability, swimming the English Channel, in other words for all of his efforts- it is a failure.
Check out Todd McMillan’s failure at GRANTPIRRIE.

WHEN: 30 July 2009 to 22 August 2009
WHERE: GRANTPIRRIE, 86 George Street Redfern NSW

When: Fri, 7 Aug, ‘09 - Sat, 22 Aug, ‘09
Where: Artspace

When: Fri, 31 Jul, ‘09 - Fri, 9 Oct, ‘09
Where: Parramatta Artists Studios

I’m worse at what I do best invite image, by Tom Polo.

When: Fri, 24 Jul, ‘09 - Sun, 6 Sep, ‘09
Where: Manly Art Gallery and Museum

When: Fri, 24 Jul, ‘09 - Sat, 15 Aug, ‘09

Where: Kaliman Gallery

COFA students working with Claire Healy & Sean Cordeiro on, Life Span, 2009 at The Ludoteca, Castello 53rd International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia.

When: Tue, 21 Jul, ‘09
Where: College of Fine Arts, cnr Oxford Street and Greens Road, lecture theatre: EGO2, 6:00 pm (please note new time)

The Venice Biennale is the world’s oldest and most prestigious biennial art exhibition. In the panel discussion, We Went to Venice, a professional artist, a curator and a current COFA student reflect on their experiences in Venice and the impact of this internationally acclaimed event on their careers.

Felicity Fenner
Felicity Fenner curated the Australian group show, Once Removed, at the 2009 Venice Biennale, which featured COFA alumni Sean Cordeiro and Claire Healy. Fenner is a curator at COFA’s Ivan Dougherty Gallery. She also curates independently.

Bronwyn Bailey
Bronwyn Bailey Charteris is an editor, artist and also a current COFA Masters of Art Administration student. As part of her degree she went to Venice in 2009 to assist Felicity Fenner in installing the work and liaising with the artists.

Narelle Jublein
Narelle Jublein represented Australia in the 1990 Venice Biennale. She has exhibited widely both nationally and internationally and is well known for her minutely worked petit points. Jubelin will be talking about the long term impact of representing Australia at Venice on her career.

When: Tuesday 21 July, 6:00pm
Where: COFA, Main Lecture Theatre (EG02)

FREE

For details on how to get to COFA and to navigate yourself around the campus, please visit: www.cofa.unsw.edu.au/about/location/