Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial
PARTNER | ART GALLERY OF NSW
Every two years Australia’s most innovative contemporary artists are showcased in a group exhibition curated by the Art Gallery of NSW. The Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial explores what a drawing can be, encompassing technology, the forces of nature and the human body.
A number of acquisitions are made from each Biennial and enter the Art Gallery of NSW’s collection.
2024
Emma Fielden From Breath 2024 (performance still) © the artist
INFINITE
ART GALLERY OF NSW
14 September 2024 – 12 January 2025
Expanding our understanding of what drawing is
Featuring the work of 10 Australia artists, the 2024 Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial, titled ‘Infinite’, focused on abstraction.
The works selected range from hand-drawn graphite, coloured pencil and ink on paper, to collaborative wall and floor drawings, works made using the power of the sun, and drawings that extend beyond two dimensions. They all share an abstract aesthetic and also explore technology, the forces of nature and the rhythms of the body.
The concept and presentation of the exhibition was the work of Anne Ryan, Senior Curator of Australian Art, Art Gallery of NSW.
Detail of Kate Vassallo Gain and loss (100 pencils) 2024 © the artist, photo: Andrew Sikorski
Kate Vassallo Gain and loss (100 pencils) 2024 © the artist, photo: Andrew Sikorski
Helen Eager, Vortex fifteen, 2023-2024 © the artist
Helen Eager, Vortex solo, 2024 (animation still) © the artist, photo: courtesy of the artist
Sandra Selig, Infinite corner, (purple sine) 2024 © the artist
Detail of Sandra Selig, Infinite corner, (purple sine) 2024 © the artist
Cameron Robbins, Helio ephemera, 2022 (detail) © the artist, photo: courtesy of the artist
Cameron Robbins, Helio ephemera, 2022 (detail) © the artist, photo: courtesy of the artist
Ngarralja Tommy May, Jila and bila, 2017 © Estate of Ngarralja Tommy May / Copyright Agency, 2024, photo: Adrian Gebers
Ngarralja Tommy May, Jila and bila, 2017 © Estate of Ngarralja Tommy May / Copyright Agency, 2024, photo: Adrian Gebers
Matthew Allen, Ochre topped grid, 2023 © the artist, photo: courtesy of the artist
Detail of Matthew Allen, Ochre topped grid, 2023 © the artist, photo: courtesy of the artist
Kerrie Poliness ,SMOB, 2024 © the artist
Detail of Emma Fielden, From Breath, 2024 (performance still) © the artist
Emma Fielden, From Breath, 2024 (performance still) © the artist
Savanhdary Vongpoothorn, Stairs of Vat Phu, 2024 © the artist
Detail of Savanhdary, Vongpoothorn Stairs of Vat Phu, 2024 © the artis
Ceara Metlikovec, The Path of the Solar Barque, 2024 (detail) © the artist
Ceara Metlikovec, The Path of the Solar Barque, 2024 (detail) © the artist
2020
Danie Mellor, A time of the world’s making, 2019 (detail), Art Gallery of NSW
REAL WORLDS
ART GALLERY OF NSW
24 October 2020 - 7 February 2021
Extraordinary drawings from place, memory and imagination
‘Real worlds’ Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial 2020 presents the work of eight contemporary Australian artists who create extraordinary new worlds in drawings of great complexity and invention.
With drawing as the principal medium, the exhibited works evoke distinctive ways of seeing and making sense of the world. For some, it recreates a physical environment, grounded in a deep connection to place or country. For others, it is an invention that springs forth from history, memory and the imagination.
The concept and presentation of the exhibition was the work of Anne Ryan, Senior Curator of Australian Art, Art Gallery of NSW.
Becc Ország Fantasy of virtue / All things and nothing 2018–20 (detail) © Becc Ország
Detail of Helen Wright Scrap stack freefall in ‘The Age of Stupid’ 2019–20 © Helen Wright. Photo: Peter Whyte
Helen Wright Scrap stack freefall in ‘The Age of Stupid’ 2019–20 © Helen Wright. Photo: Peter Whyte
Installation view (left to right) Helen Wright Scrap stack, the slump 2019–20 and Scrap stack freefall in ‘The Age of Stupid’ 2019–20 © Helen Wright
Peter Mungkuri Punu Ngura (Country with trees) 3 2019 (detail), Art Gallery of New South Wales, Aboriginal Collection Benefactors Group 2019 © Peter Mungkuri
Installation view Peter Mungkuri Punu Ngura (Country with trees) 1-4 2019 © Peter Mungkuri
Martin Bell Martin Son of the Universe, what me worry 2018–19 (detail) © Martin Bell
Installation view Martin Bell Martin Son of the Universe, what me worry 2018–19 © Martin Bell
Danie Mellor A time of the world’s making 2019 (detail) © Danie Mellor
Installation view Danie Mellor A time of the world’s making 2019 © Danie Mellor
Detail of Installation view Nathan Hawkes. Various works © Nathan Hawkes
Installation view Nathan Hawkes. Various works © Nathan Hawkes
Installation view Matt Coyle. Various works © Matt Coyle
Matt Coyle Night pass 2020 © Matt Coyle
2018
Locust Jones, The end of the beginning, New Year's Eve to April Fools, 2018, ink, pencil, ArtGraf and watercolour on paper, Collection of the artist. © Locust Jones. Photo: AGNSW, Mim Stirling
PLAYBACK
ART GALLERY OF NSW
7 July - 21 October 2018
A graphic connection between drawing and the moving image
In response to images found in art history, archives, newspapers, cinema and online, eight artists in this exhibition use drawing to reanimate history, in a process that involves imagination, fabrication and the repurposing of prior sources.
Vernon Ah Kee creates skeletal and ghostly faces in remembrance of the 2004 Palm Island riots; Sharon Goodwin’s 3-D drawings re-vision the slippery surfaces of fact and fiction in historical narrative; and Laura Hindmarsh’s double exposures trace images of women in cinematic classics as found on the internet.
The concept and presentation of the exhibition was the work of Matt Cox, Curator of Asian Art, Art Gallery of NSW.
Lucienne Rickard, So it goes, 2017, Graphite on drawing film, photo: Beaver Galleries Canberra
Detail of Locust Jones, The end of the beginning, New Year's Eve to April fools, 2018, ink, pencil, ArtGraf and watercolour on paper, 308 x 1000 cm. Collection of the artist. © Locust Jones.
Detail of Locust Jones, The end of the beginning, New Year's Eve to April fools, 2018, ink, pencil, ArtGraf and watercolour on paper, 308 x 1000 cm. Collection of the artist. © Locust Jones.
Detail of Locust Jones, The end of the beginning, New Year's Eve to April fools, 2018, ink, pencil, ArtGraf and watercolour on paper, 308 x 1000 cm. Collection of the artist. © Locust Jones.
Locust Jones, The end of the beginning, New Year's Eve to April fools, 2018, ink, pencil, ArtGraf and watercolour on paper, 308 x 1000 cm. Collection of the artist. © Locust Jones. Photo: AGNSW, Mim Stirling.
Nick Strike, Box of clouds, 2017, 24 ink drawings on paper, pins, 6 pin boards (echo-panel), 16mm film manually manipulated and transferred onto single channel digital video, projection screen, colour, silent. Collection of the artist. © Nick Strike. Photo: Stelios Papadakis
Laura Hindmarsh, Solveig Dommatin: Wings of Desire, 2015, from the series Screen Studies, gouache and pencil on paper, 14 x 19.3 cm (image). Collection of the artist. © Laura Hindmarsh. Photo: AGNSW, Mim Stirling.
Laura Hindmarsh, Trisha Brown: Homemade, 2018, from the series Screen Studies, gouache and pencil on paper, 14 x 22.5 cm (image). Collection of the artist. © Laura Hindmarsh. Photo: AGNSW, Mim Stirling.
Laura Hindmarsh, Trisha Brown: Homemade, 2018, from the series Screen Studies, gouache and pencil on paper, 14 × 22.5 cm (image). Collection of the artist. © Laura Hindmarsh. Photo: AGNSW, Mim Stirling.
2016
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
CLOSE TO HOME
ART GALLERY OF NSW
30 July - 11 December 2016
Artists connected by narrative, memory and experience
The second Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial brought together six contemporary Australian artists: Jumaadi, Maria Kontis, Richard Lewer, Noel McKenna, Catherine O’Donnell and Nyapanyapa Yunupingu.
These artists have created works that have grown from memory and been nurtured by the imagination. Collectively they investigate the possibilities of the medium to express complex themes that resonate on both a personal and a shared level.
The concept and presentation of the exhibition was the work of Anne Ryan, Curator, Art Gallery of NSW.
Detail of Catherine O’Donnell, Inhabited space, 2015-16, charcoal on paper, charcoal wall drawing
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
Noel McKenna, Animals I have known, 2015-16, pencil, pen and ink, wash on paper
Nyapanyapa Yunupingu, Marwat, 2014, black fibre-tipped pen, natural pigments on paper,
Maria Kontis, Icaria 1912, 2016, pastel on paper
Jumaadi, Halfway to the light, halfway through the night, 2010-14 - chinagraph, pencil on mulberry paper
Richard Lewer, We’re all going to die, 2015 - graphite on cardboard
Detail of Richard Lewer, We’re all going to die, 2015 - graphite on cardboard
Detail of Richard Lewer, We’re all going to die, 2015 - graphite on cardboard
2014
DRAWING OUT
ART GALLERY OF NSW
21 November 2014 - 26 June 2015
Exploring how the art of drawing can defy classification
‘Drawing out’ was the first in a series of curated exhibitions on contemporary Australian drawing held every two years – the Dobell Australian Drawing Biennial – following the acclaimed Dobell Prize for Drawing (1993–2012).
It featured 10 Australian contemporary artists: Tom Carment, Joe Furlonger, Ross Laurie, Ivy Pareroultja, Ana Pollak, Peter Sharp, Mary Tonkin, John R Walker, Gosia Wlodarczak and John Wolseley. Drawing is fundamental to the practice of each of these artists.
Their works range from watercolour to film, performance and sculpture, highlighting how the art of drawing can often defy classification.
The exhibition reveals how the process of drawing itself allows these artists to engage with the landscape – urban, rural, natural or constructed. Their wide-ranging works move from intimate sketchbook drawings to large-scale panoramas.
The concept and presentation of the exhibition was the work of Anne Ryan, Curator, Art Gallery of NSW.
Ivy Pareroultja, Mt Gillen NT, 2013 - watercolour on wove paper
Tom Carment, Loan office, King Street, Newtown, 2013 - pen and black ink, watercolour on white paper
John R Walker, Little River Rd, Thursday Morning 2011, gouache on paper
Detail of Ana Pollak, Flux, 2012 -single channel digital video animation, black and white, sound 1/60
John Wolseley, A Clarence Galaxia in the Ancient Sphagnum Bogs – Skullbone Plains, Tasmania 2013 - watercolour, graphite on paper
Gosia Wlodarczak, On the Sky and Water, Frost Drawing for AGNSW, 2014 - A seven-day drawing performance - Pigment pen on glass
Detail of Gosia Wlodarczak, On the Sky and Water, Frost Drawing for AGNSW, 2014 - A seven-day drawing performance - Pigment pen on glass
Gosia Wlodarczak, On the Sky and Water, Frost Drawing for AGNSW, 2014 - A seven-day drawing performance - Pigment pen on glass
Gosia Wlodarczak, On the Sky and Water, Frost Drawing for AGNSW, 2014 - A seven-day drawing performance - Pigment pen on glass