Exhibitions

LIVING WALLS

FORM Gallery

357 Murray Street, Perth

29 June – 24 August, 2012

Living Walls showcases the work of a diverse selection of street and mural artists, illustrators and designers. Featuring established and emerging, local and national artists whose work is sought after for public commissions, commercial product and private collections, Living Walls encourages audiences to think differently about the potential for street, graffiti and mural art to transform the texture and appeal of urban landscapes, and to reach into private and commercial spaces.

Living Walls aims to connect artists, businesses and local councils to stimulate collaboration and enhance the city’s vitality whilst generating new income streams for artists through limited edition commercial product. Featuring the work of a group of innovative young artists, Living Walls will also extend beyond the art gallery into the city through a series of commissioned paste-ups.

Living Walls features a range of established and emerging artists including Beastman, Jodee Knowles, Sean Morris, Andrew Nicholls, Jae Criddle, Steven Christie, Chris Nixon, Amok Island, Shannon Crees, Chloe Spiers-Atherden and Anya Brock.

Outpost mural by Beastman, Cockatoo Island, 2011

Exhibition sponsors

ROA: Paradox

FORM Gallery

22 October – 13 January, 2012

In 2011 FORM – in partnership with Skalitzers Contemporary, a Berlin based gallery – hosted the Belgian street artist. ROA is celebrated across the world with his work appearing in public places in almost every continent. His work is finely detailed and captures the character of a place’s local animals – both native and common introduced species. During his time in Western Australia he was provided access to the far reaches of Australia’s North West, completed a body of work as a resident at Midland Atelier, exhibited at FORM Gallery and completed a number of public works throughout the state.

Travelling through remote terrain accessible only via four-wheel-drive or on foot, ROA was hosted by Ngarluma Aboriginal elders and shown places known only to the locals. For ROA the Pilbara is place of paradoxes, where the natural beauty of the land intersects with the flotsam and jetsam of human habitation – disused water tanks, abandoned houses, pieces of car and machinery. Where life and death overlap. Where cultures and histories constantly cross paths. Where urban art meets the outback.

ROA’s experience in the Pilbara informed his consequent exhibition called Paradox which presented highly detailed interpretations of Australian animal species including cassowaries, kangaroos, echidnas, platypus, possums, magpies, falcons and wombats. ROA painted these animals onto, inside and behind vintage cupboards, shelves, doors, window frames, cabinets and other materials salvaged from buildings within the Midland Railway Workshops and found during his regional travels. The exhibition was interactive, with visitors encouraged to open doors, windows and other moveable parts of the installations. To download a copy of the catalogue here.

ROA: Paradox Exhibition, FORM Gallery 2011, Photo: Bill Shaylor