Catalogue
ABOUT 9 X 5 NOW
16-25 June 2017
9 X 5 NOW showcases generations of practicing artists who have studied or taught at the National Gallery School or VCA Art. The most experienced artist represented attended the National Gallery School in the 1940s, and the youngest completed studies at the VCA just one year ago.
The exhibition title and concept references the famous ‘9 by 5 Impression Exhibition’ held at the Buxton Rooms, Swanston Street Melbourne in 1889. All seven artists in that exhibition, Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton, Frederick McCubbin, Charles Conder, C Douglas Richardson, R.E. Falls and Herbert Daly, were National Gallery School alumni. McCubbin was also a staff member and Louis Abrahams, also a former student, supplied the 9 x 5 inch cedar cigar box lids on which the works were painted. The Victorian College of the Arts is indebted to Lauraine Diggins of Lauraine Diggins Fine Art for facilitating the loan of works by Roberts, Conder and Streeton from the original 1889 exhibition especially for the opening of 9 X 5 NOW.
At the time women made up the majority of the National Gallery School student cohort and alumni. It is significant to note that Jane Sutherland, Clara Southern, May Vale, Elizabeth Parsons, Jane Price, who practised en plein air painting and were associated with the development of Australian Impressionism were not included in the ‘9 by 5 Impression Exhibition’.
In contrast, representation in the current 9 X 5 NOW exhibition is characterised by inclusivity and diversity of identity, generation and practice. Each contributing artist was supplied with a 9 x 5 inch (23 x 13 cm) plywood board, and a range of works have been returned from across Australia and overseas that include contemporary approaches to photography, drawing, text, painting and cross media practice.
It is easy to forget that en plein air painting promoted by the ‘9 by 5 Impression Exhibition’ was avant garde and challenged the prevailing status quo. In this light, the 1889 exhibition can be considered one of the first Artist Run Initiatives (ARIs), which have since come to characterise exhibition practice in Melbourne.
Many ARIs have been founded and developed by subsequent generations of National Gallery School and VCA graduates as venues for independent exhibitions, debate and the promotion of cutting edge aesthetics. These include Art Projects, Roar Studios, First floor, Basement, TCB art inc, Conical, Westspace, DAMP, Kings ARI, Blender Studios, Blindside, Platform and Caves.
The work in 9 x 5 NOW is indicative of the significant contribution the 350 eminent alumni and staff have made to art education, the visual arts and the broader cultural landscape of Australia. It has been a privilege and a challenge to curate this landmark exhibition.
Dr Elizabeth Gower
Curator, 9 X 5 NOW
9 X5 NOW is one of the highlights of ART150, a year-long program of events, interviews and expert commentary to celebrate 150 years of art in Melbourne at the VCA and its predecessor institution, the National Gallery School – a lineage that began with its establishment in 1867.
More than 300 contemporary visual artists have contributed original artworks for the 9 X 5 NOW exhibition, the biggest show ever to be staged the University of Melbourne’s Margaret Lawrence Gallery.
The funds generated from the sale of works from the exhibition will establish the ART150 Fellowship which will encourage subsequent generations of alumni to pursue and support high ambitions for their work.
I thank the artists for coming to the project with such enthusiasm and acknowledge their participation, generosity, and to recognise the important contribution they will make for generations of future artists.
Professor Su Baker
Director, Victorian College of the Arts
The exhibition showcases generations of practicing artists who have studied or taught at the National Gallery School or VCA Art. The most experienced artist represented attended the National Gallery School in the 1940s, and the youngest completed studies at the Victorian College of the Arts in 2016.
Kay Abude 1 | Christopher Beaumon 19 | Sandra Bridie | Julia Ciccarone |
A Constructed World | Stephen Benwell 20 | Jack Brown | Marc Clark |
Colleen Ahern 3 | Lauren Berkowitz | Lyndell Brown | Fred Colla 55 |
Tom Alberts | Damiano Bertoli | Kirsty Budge 40 | Edward Colless |
Micky Allan 5 | Hannah Bertram | Louisa Bufardeci | Cate Consadine |
Adrian Allen | Kate Beynon | Michael Bullock | Martina Copley |
Santina Amato | Natasha Bieniek 25 | Peter Burke, 42 | Yvette Coppersmith |
Rick Amor | Fergus Binns | Tim Burns | Lane Cormick 60 |
Benjamin Armstrong | Terri Bird | Jon Campbell 45 | Emma Coulter |
Beth Arnold 10 | Kylie Blackley | Hamish Carr | Ross Coulter |
Rosalind Atkins | Barbara Bolt | Jon Cattapan | Maryanne Coutts |
Sean Bailey | Chris Bond 30 | Angela Cavalieri | Steve Cox 64 |
Su Baker | Peter Booth | Celeste Chandler | Greg Creek 65 |
Irene Barberis | Paul Borg | Sadie Chandler | Zoe Croggon |
Elizabeth Barnett 15 | Lynne Boyd | Jenny Zhe Chang | Sarah Crowest |
Chris Barry | Ry David Bradley | Danica Chappell, 51 | Georgina Cue |
Tim Bass | Mostyn Bramley-Moore 35 | Kevin Chin | |
Belle Bassin | Nicole Breedon | Nadine Christensen |
DAMP | Kate Durham | Philip Faulks | Sam George |
Aleks Danko 70 | Mark Dustin | Carolyn Fels | Nina Gilbert |
Peter Daverington | Eliza Dyball 85 | Emily Ferretti | Minna Gilligan |
Isabel Davies | Chris Dyson | Anna Finlayson 100 | Andrew Goodman |
Penelope Davis | Stephen Eastaugh | Prudence Flint | Sharon Goodwin 115 |
Kate Daw | Craig Easton | Emily Floyd, 103 | Elizabeth Gower |
Janet Dawson 75 | Janenne Eaton, 91 | Ryan L. Foote | Greatest Hits 117 |
Destiny Deacon | Tim Edwards | Louise Forthun | Janina Green |
Marieke Dench | Merrin Eirth | Fred Fowler 105 | Rona Green, 119 |
James Deutsher | Dianne Emery | Graham Fransella | Charles Green 120 |
Nick Devlin | Carolyn Eskdale | Virginia Fraser | Katya Grokhovsky |
Kim Donaldson 80 | Catherine Evans | Betra Fraval | Peter Grziwotz, 122 |
Adrian Doyle | Megan Evans 95 | Mark Friedlander | Kim Guthrie, 123 |
Lesley Dumbrell, 84 | Fayen d'Evie | Tony Garifalakis 110 |
Stephen Haley 124 | Anna Higgins, 140 | Raafat Ishak | Chris Koller |
Irene Hanenbergh | Christopher LG Hill | Kotoe Ishii 157 | Annika Koops |
David Harley | Rebecca Ann Hobbs, 142 | Susan Jacobs, 158 | Jessica Kritzer |
Melinda Harper | Geoff Hogg, 143 | Gary James (Spook) | Tessa Laird 175 |
Brent Harris | Heidi Holmes, 144 | Natasha Johns-Messenger, 160 | Claire Lambe |
Ry Haskings | Timothy Horn , 145 | Helen Johnson | Peter Lancaster |
Gail Hastings 130 | John Howley | Tim Jones 162 | Bonnie Lane |
Katherine Hattam, 131 | Katherine Huang ,147 | Kate Just 163 | Lucina Lane |
Bill Hay | Lou Hubbard, 148 | Adrian Kellett | Christopher Langton 180 |
Siri Hayes | Kez Hughes, 149 | William Kelly 165 | Alun Leach-Jones |
Andrew Hazewinkel | Clare Humphries, 150 | Veronica Kent | Katie Lee |
Louise Bearman, 135 | Paula Hunt | Danius Kesminas | Richard Lewer |
Will Heathcote | Noel S Hutchison, 152 | Justine Khamara | Dane Lovett |
Bill Henson | Greg Irvine, 153 | Anastasia Klose | Sean Lowry 185 |
Sophia Hewson, 138 | Julie Irving, 154 | Sophie Knezic, 170 | James Lynch |
Lily Hibberd | Melanie Irwin, 155 | Paul Knight |
Fiona Macdonald | Lewis Miller | Susan Norrie | Rosslynd Piggott |
Stewart Macfarlane | Viv Miller | Jamie O'Connell | Kenny Pittock, 253 |
Taree Mackenzie, 194 | Adelle Mills | Fiona Orr | Kerrie Poliness, 254 |
Victor Majzner | Allan Mitelman | Selina Ou | Elizabeth Presa, 255 |
Neil Malone | Tully Moore | Sanja Pahoki | Lutz Presser |
Gabriella Mangano | Kent Morris | David Palliser | Jake Preval |
Silvana Mangano | Callum Morton | Nikos Pantazopoulos | Nusra Latif Qureshi |
Amanda Marburg | Arlo Mountford | Louise Paramor | Lisa Radford |
Terry Matassoni | Nick Mourtzakis | Marc Pascal | Hannah Raisin |
Georgie Mattingley | Darren Munce 217 | Jahnne Pasco-White | Steven Rendall |
Helen Maudsley | Jan Murray | Caitlin Patane | Steven Rhall |
Stephen McCarthy | Noriko Nakamura | Steaphan Paton | Geoffrey Ricardo |
Laith McGregor | Sophie Neate | Jim Pavlidis | Cameron Robbins, 263 |
Rob McHaffie | Nicholas Nedelkopoulos | Mary Lou Pavlovic | Kiron Robinson |
Moya McKenna | John R. Neeson | Nicholas Pearce | Kate Rohde |
Ben McKeown | Jan Nelson | Sean Peoples | David Rosetzky |
Andrew McLaughlin | Geoff Newton | Simon Pericich | Kati Rule |
Alasdair McLuckie | Naomi Nicholls, 225 | Oscar Perry | Natalie Ryan |
Fiona McMonagle | Tom Nicholson | Stieg Persson | Pip Ryan |
John Meade | John Nixon | Drew Pettifer | John Ryrie 270 |
Sean Meilak | Rose Nolan, 228 | Caroline Phillips | Nick Ryrie |
Scott Miles, 207 | David Noonan | Patricia Piccinini |
Bernhard Sachs | Slow Art Collective | Andrew Taylor | Darren Wardle |
Mia Salsjo | Sally Smart | KathyTemin | Jason Waterhouse |
Bill Sampson | Shannon Smiley | Simon Terrill | Jenny Watson |
Sangeeta Sandrasegar | Ken Smith | Natalie Thomas | Ieuan Weinman |
Gareth Sansom | Tai Snaith | Jensen Tjhung, 3 | Irene Wellm |
Mark Schaller | Charlie Sofo | Jane Trengove | Ian Westacott |
Rohan Schwartz | Valerie Sparks | Kate Tucker, 314 | Bradd Westmoreland |
Jo Scicluna | Bryan Spier, 297 | Meredith Turnbull | Kylie White |
John Scurry | Susan Stamp | Judith van Heeren | Stephen Wickham |
Nicholas Selenitsch | Stelarc | Isadora Vaughan | Rudi Williams |
Lani Seligman | Esther Stewar | Trinh Vu | David Wilson |
David Sequeira | Jacqui Stockdale | Ace Wagstaff | Grace Wood |
Nick Seymour | Mark Stoner | Xanthe Waite | Jordan Wood, 339 |
Vivienne Shark Le Witt | Richard Stringer | Alex Walker | Laura Woodward |
Utako Shindo | Darren Sylvester | Deborah Walker | Alice Wormald |
Mark Shorter | Michel Szczepanski | John Walker | Azza Zein |
Marie Sierra | Camilla Tadich | Lyndal Walker | Constanze Zikos |
Miranda Skoczek | Masato Takasaka, 307 | Murray Walker | Simon Zoric |
Simone Slee | Cyrus Tang | Amber Wallis, 326 | Alex Zubryn |