Exhibitions Opening Saturday 8 November 2-4PM

Evidence of Scale V, FireWorks Gallery’s annual showcase of sculpture and works on paper, this year features Rod Moss, Phil Gordon, Christopher Hodges, Jennifer Herd, Paul Bong, Daryl Hewson, and Walala Tjapaltjarri & Michael Eather. Another group exhibition in the downstairs gallery, From the air, sees various landscape compositions and atmospheric perspectives by Kathleen Kngale, Abie Loy, George Hairbrush Tjungurrayi, Lydia Balbal, and Alick Sweet all in the flightpath of Stephen Hart’s four-metre sculpture of a Catalina aircraft.

Upstairs, in Evidence of Scale V, 10 new fine art reproductions of Rod Moss’ meticulously detailed graphite drawings are being shown for the first time. Emily Gap north aspect (Image 1), an original graphite work on paper from 1994, will also be included, creating contrast and providing a ‘timelapse’ of Rod’s work. Collectively, they depict Central Australian landscapes and scenes inspired by over 40 years living in Alice Springs.

Christopher Hodges explains his creative practice and the impetus behind works including Sentry (Image 2) - “My work on paper, paintings and sculptures, are all linked. The forms in the paintings are created by the illusion of the brush but once liberated in space they become objects in themselves. The line becomes the form."

Local doctor, collector and artist Daryl Hewson muses on his new sculpture in bronze, Go Forth (Image 3), explaining that, “This work explores the human need for independence, renewal and invention. Destiny pushes us from the safety of the nurturing protector. The withdrawn cloak leaves the nascent youth naked but free; unencumbered, but with the gifts bestowed by education and love. We must all make our own way forth”. A recent Walala Tjapaltjarri & Michael Eather collaboration in Alice Springs has resulted in the Tingari Play series (Image 4). Tjapaltjarri’s distinct Tingari shapes painted on top of Eather’s colourful striped backgrounds often clash, creating playful and organic compositions.

Downstairs in From the air, Stephen Hart’s suspended sculpture of a Catalina aircraft flies over an entire continent of Aboriginal art, from the east coast, through to the Central Desert and the Western Australian Coast. Bidyadanga artist Lydia Balbal’s Untitled (Image 5) painting depicts the course of a subterranean water stream, reaching for the roots of thousand-year-old myths and landscapes by going beyond the visible surface of things. 

A plane (vii) (Image 6) by Alick Sweet pays tribute to the late sculptor; his joyful, light-hearted work and mastery of the craft.

FireWorks Gallery director, Michael Eather comments that “There is a terrific interplkay of 2D + 3D, large and small, Aboriginal and non-Indigenous, throughout the gallery, making for exciting and interactive exhibitions.”