The Thompson Estate Winery in the desirable Wilyabrup sub-region of Western Australia in the Margaret River stands at the forefront of the estate-based, family-owned wineries of the region.
Since 2011, Thompson Estate has provided valued support to the ongoing success of Sculpture by the Sea, the producer of the world’s largest, free-to-the-public outdoor sculpture exhibitions.
In partnership with Sculpture by the Sea the award-winning Thompson Estate Winery is proud to present the Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection, a curated selection of important sculptures by International and Australian artists displayed in the grounds of the Winery.
On your visits throughout the year we hope that you will continue to enjoy the Sculpture Collection including major artworks by International artists: Akiho Tata (Japan), Takahiro Hirata (Japan), Markus Hofer (Austria), Morgan Jones (New Zealand), Peter Lundberg (USA), Haruyuki Uchida (Japan) and important sculptures by artists working in Western Australia including: Jennifer Cochrane, R.M. Ron Gomboc Cit. WA, Tim Macfarlane Reid, Johannes Pannekoek,
and NSW based sculptor Linda Bowden.
For all sales enquiries, please contact Florence Flood, Sculpture Sales Manager [email protected].
Akiho Tata, ‘Love Earth’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Love Earth’ (2020)
Materials granite, paint, gold leaf
Dimensions 100 h x 200 w x 110 d cm
Statement Stones and fossils hold memories of the Earth. When broken, these memories shine from within. The three primary colors used in this sculpture are red, yellow and blue which connects with the Japanese kanji for Akiho’s name – sun, moon, and mountain. These motifs can be seen in the carved shape of this work and the painted lines express the brilliance and life-giving quality of the Earth.
The motifs of sun, moon, and mountains can be seen in the carved shape of this work. The split surface reflects the horizon, with the sky above, and ground and Earth below. The artist wants us to write and seal messages in this stone for our future selves.
Biography Collaboration between Akiho and Tata Ota. Group exhibitions including Kagawa Arts Festival, Kobe-Suma-Rikyu Park Modern Sculpture Exhibition, Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail and the Yokohama Biennale. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 7 times since 2010. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 10 times since 2013.
Linda Bowden (NSW), ‘Open’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
Open (2006)
Materials mild steel, automotive paint
Dimensions 240 h x 183 w x 240 d cm
Statement Initially exhibited in 2006 this work welcomes the audience to explore this abstracted home. Today it feels more like a question.
Biography BFA (Sculpture) NAS 1999. Finalist Wynne Prize 2013. First woman to become a member of SxS Bondi Decade Club in 2012. Represented in collections including the Transfield Collection at Walsh Bay and Waverley Council in Sydney. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 14 times since 2000. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 6 times since 2008.
Jennifer Cochrane, ‘Endless Column’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
Endless Column (2023)
Materials galvanised pipe, fittings
Dimensions 450 x 42 x 35 cm
Statement While exploring ideas with existing pipe and fittings I was reminded of Brancusi’s Endless Column. There is an underlying thread of subverting the notion of traditional sculpture within my work. My version of Endless Column is a work that continues this thread through the creation of a sculpture by assembling components.
Biography BFA (Sculpture) Curtin 1988. Represented in public and private collections including Wallcliffe House, Margaret River;
Harvest Lakes, Perth; City of Mandurah; Parliament House WA; ANZAC Park, Mount Hawthorn; Pilbara Police & Community Complex, Karratha; and Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail at Tumbarumba. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 7 times since 2005. Sculpture by the Sea, Aarhus 2013. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 14 times since 2005.
Ron Gomboc, ‘Migrating Spirits II ‘, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Migrating Spirits II’ (2012)
Materials patinated copper
Dimensions approximately 3 metres high
Statement Humans have continuously migrated in search of a better life. In Australian history migration in the early days was creating a penal colony and nothing is more evident today than the necessity for people to migrate to escape persecution and hunger for political or religious reasons. On a personal level, as a migrant I relate to these four sculptures as they symbolise the story of my maternal family migration – my maternal great grandfather Martin Potocnik left the northern shores of the Adriatic (Austro Hungarian rule) and immigrated to Los Angeles, USA in 1902. My maternal grandfather Ivan Veljacic left Croatia (northern Adriatic) in 1924 and immigrated to the Swan Valley, Western Australia. In 1961 I was 13 years old when my own immediate family arrived in the Swan Valley from Croatia. The four individual sculptures represent Migrating Spirits. My great grandfather, my grandfather, my father and myself.
The shape of the sculpture at the top refers to our spirit and the spirit of birds, whales and other migrating animals. The sculpture symbolises the strength of the migrating spirit of Nature.
Biography Exhibited internationally including Dubai, France, and Japan. Goyang Symposium South Korea 2011, Symposium of Art, New Caledonia 2010, and Qindao-Seoul Symposium China 2012. Represented in collections including Edith Cowan University, Fortescue Metals Group, Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail and Town of Cottesloe. Exhibited at Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 20 times since 1999 and Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 20 times since 2005.
Takahiro Hirata (Japan), ‘Dark Night Shine’ 2014, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Dark Night Shine’ (2014)
Materials black granite, white granite
Dimensions 235 h x 80 w x 75 d cm
Statement I respect people who make effort. Bettering oneself is hard. Good times are fine, but sometimes the going gets tough. But I believe that with consistent effort, the shining light of hope can be found in even the darkest of night. Looking at this work, can you feel the light of hope shining through the dark night?
Biography 10 solo exhibitions in Nagoya, Japan. Represented in public and private collections including Asago Museum, Makurazaki City, Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail, Town of Cottesloe, and a major private collection in New Zealand. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 8 times since 2012. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe
11 times since 2014.
Markus Hofer (Austria), ‘The Elements of Time’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘The Elements of Time’ (2018)
Materials iron
Dimensions 250 h x 150 w x 1 d cm
Statement ‘The Elements of Time (2018)’ shows a picture everyone has seen thousands of times, but never in such a setting. It is an attempt to work differently on the presentation of reality.
Biography Graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna 2003. Numerous exhibitions throughout Austria and internationally including France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Slovakia and USA. Solo exhibitions include the Albertina, Vienna 2012 and Salzburg Museum 2015. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 3 times since 2016. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 2016, 2020.
Morgan Jones, ‘Starstruck’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
Starstruck (2024)
Materials steel, automotive paint
Dimensions 210 x 140 x 340 cm
Statement Starstruck continues my preoccupation with time. The yellow is symbolic of sunlight. We are the evolving product of celestial collisions.
Biography Group exhibitions in New Zealand, Australia and England including a retrospective exhibition at Christchurch Art Gallery 2004. Recipient Aqualand Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2019. Represented in the North Sydney Public Art Trail, and private collections in England, Germany, New Zealand, USA and Australia.
Sculpture by the Sea, Aarhus 2011. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 7 times since 2015. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 3 times since 2016.
Rodney Kevin Laws, ‘Safe Planet’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
Safe Planet
Materials corten steel, stainless steel
Dimensions 130 h x 120 w x 130 d cm
Statement Intrigued by nature’s myriads of forms, from planets and stars to the tiniest of insects, creating metal sculptures that capture even the smallest amount of magic within nature is my goal. In making Safe Planet my thought was “Spin the wheel, take a gamble on the future of our precious planet”.
Biography West Australian sculptor Rodney Kevin Laws uses charcoal from local forests after fires to heat and shape materials that he largely collects or recycles, transforming these items from his kitchen draws or kids’ toy boxes into works of art. He has exhibited widely in Western Australia including: Margaret River Galleries, St Hilda’s Annual Art Exhibition, and Vasse Art Award. His work is held in private and public collections around the world and locally at: Bunker Bay Resort, Nannup Streetscape, Newmans Visitors Centre, New Norcia, and Wesley Centre Uniting Church.
Peter Lundberg (USA), ‘Eclipse’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Eclipse’ (2014)
Materials Cast concrete, steel, earth
Dimensions 700 h x 250 w x 100 d cm
Statement A giant figure.
Biography Recipient Nord Art Award 2011, Balnaves Foundation Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2012, Macquarie Group Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2014. Exhibited in Australia, China, Europe and USA. Represented in public collections including: the Harbour Trust, Sydney, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, Sculpture Fields at Montague Park, Chattanooga, USA and Town of Cottesloe. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 9 times since 2011 and Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe10 times since 2012.
* Not for sale.
Peter Lundberg (USA), ‘Giorgio’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Giorgio’ (2014)
Materials Cast concrete, steel, earth
Dimensions 1000 h x 300 w x 100 d cm
Statement A giant figure.
Biography Recipient Nord Art Award 2011, Balnaves Foundation Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2012, Macquarie Group Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2014. Exhibited in Australia, China, Europe and USA. Represented in public collections including: the Harbour Trust, Sydney, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, Sculpture Fields at Montague Park, Chattanooga, USA and Town of Cottesloe. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 9 times since 2011 and Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe10 times since 2012.
* Not for sale.
Tim Macfarlane Reid (WA), ‘Grace’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
Grace (2020)
Materials jesmonite, stainless steel
Dimensions 170 h x 155 w x 70 d cm
Statement Transformed from liquid to solid; movement, motion and fluidity is encapsulated in this solid form
Biography BFA NAS 1995. Solo and group exhibitions including Gallows Gallery, Perth. Represented in collections: City of Swan, Kalgoorlie Court House, Kattanning Health Centre, State Theatre of Western Australia and Town of Cottesloe. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 6 times since 2007. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 18 times since 2006.
Johannes Pannekoek, ‘Change Ahead II’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Change Ahead II’ (2016)
Materials Corten Steel
Dimensions 216 h x 108 w x 144 d cm
Statement Inspired by the non-linear nature of life. We live, we learn, we change.
Rather than following the linear textbook process of learning, Johannes continues to learn and enhance his craft in a nonlinear fashion – through observation, direct experience, discovery, and a preparedness to change. This approach, he feels has led him to produce works that are both challenging and unique.
Biography Recipient Aqualand Sculpture Award Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2016. Represented in public and private collections including Crown Towers, Perth and Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, Georges Heights, Sydney. Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2016 – 2017. Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 7 times since 2009.
Haruyuki Uchida (Japan), ‘Stationary Shape’, Thompson Estate Sculpture Collection. Photo Martine Perret.
‘Stationary Shape’ (2012)
Materials stainless steel, magnet, paint
Dimensions 210 h x 92 w x 82 d cm
Statement I use magnets as part of the material for my sculptures. My sculptures maintain a mysterious equilibrium due to the repulsive force of these magnets. The cylinders sway subtly with the flow of air and human touch, expressing the invisible presence of gravity and air. If you have a chance to touch it, you will have a magical experience of floating.
Biography Haruyuki Uchida is a renowned sculptor in the field of kinetic art. Significant group exhibitions in Japan include the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale 2009 and 2012, and the Takamijima Project in the Setouchi Triennale, Japan 2013, 2016 and 2019. His work is internationally represented in Kyoto National Museum of Modern Arts, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and The National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea. He is represented in private and public collections in Australia including ArtsACT, Canberra International Airport, the Holmes à Court Collection and the Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail. Uchida has exhibited at Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 7 times since 2006, Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe 7 times since 2008 and Sculpture by the Sea, Aarhus 2009.