News
Sculpture in China
Written by John McDonald, Art critic for the Sydney Morning Herald. John McDonald writes about the impact of contemporary sculpture within the Chinese culture to society in recent years. Today’s Chinese sculpture displays all the qualities that have made China into the contemporary art capital of the world – originality, energy and ambition. Many artists acquired…
2012 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: An Introduction to Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2012, by Harry Nicolson
Written by Harry Nicolson, writer of the introduction for the first Sydney Biennale catalogue in 1973. Harry Nicolson gives an insight on the upcoming Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2012. We are pleased to have the writer of the introduction for the first Sydney Biennale catalogue in 1973, Harry Nicolson, write this years catalogue essay….
2011 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: Sculpture by the Sea: the first fifteen years
This is an edited version of John McDonald’s essay in the 232 page book ‘Sculpture by the Sea: the first fifteen years’ David Handley, the founder of Sculpture by the Sea, recalls that the entire budget of the first Bondi exhibition in 1997 was $11,000, of which $8,500 was spent on artists’ awards. The show…
Sculpture by the Sea: A Brief History, fifteen years
Written by John McDonald, Senior Art Critic, The Sydney Morning Herald. That first Sculpture by the Sea had an infectious energy, and was buoyed up by the kind of good will that is increasingly rare nowadays. John McDonald. This is an edited version of John McDonald’s essay in ‘Sculpture by the Sea: the first fifteen…
Anthony Caro Sculptor
By Dr. Michael Hill, Author and Lecturer, National Art School, Sydney. Anthony Caro is the finest sculptor since David Smith (d.1965) and among the major artists of the modern era. In the 1960s he was a focus for theoretical debates concerning the nature of abstraction and indeed art in general; Michael Fried, for example, believed Caro…
2010 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: A Robust Art
By Dr. Michael Hill Author and Lecturer, National Art School, Sydney A recurrent motif in discussions of sculpture over the last forty years has been a suspicion of object-based monumentality, in contrast to more process-orientated and relational work. Underlying this is an erosion of confidence in the very idea that something might be worth monumentalising….
Keizo Ushio celebrating his 20th exhibition in Australia
By David Handley AM Founding Director, Sculpture by the Sea Keizo Ushio is an extraordinary sculptor and a wonderful person, whose sculptures (and smile) are loved in many countries around the world. This year’s Sculpture by the Sea, Cottesloe marks Keizo’s 20th exhibition in Australia, a milestone that happily coincides this month with the City…
2009 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: From Bondi to Aarhus, Denmark
By Ken Scarlett Curator and writer for Australian Sculpture In June, 2009 Sculpture by the Sea went international for the first time. The site of this new venture was Aarhus, a city three hours from Copenhagen, Denmark, where, with a shoreline encompassing sand, rocks, lawn and forest it made a superbly beautiful setting for the…
Cottesloe Surf Lifesaving Club: 100 years of Surf, Sand and Sculpture
By Frank Gasch A long time member of the Cottesloe SLSC, publisher, writer and caricaturist Is anyone bold enough to sculpt a shark in a manner that truly embodies our deepest held fears, a powerful force, a shaping force, a sea monster that inhabits our imagination? In November 1925 Simeon Ettleson died after being attacked…
2008 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: Walsh Bay Sculpture Walk
By Stephen Bradley Curator, The Transfield Art Collection. In 1985 the historic Piers and Shore Buildings at Walsh Bay were saved from demolition by the Premier and Minister for the Arts, Neville Wran. He reserved Pier 4/5 for the arts and particularly the Sydney Theatre Company. Over the following twenty years Piers 4/5 and 2/3,…
Indiana Tea Rooms
Ruth Marchant James Author of Cottesloe: A Town of Distinction From the turn of the century until the late 1920s a cluster of temporary beachside stalls and bathing structures were a prominent part of the Cottesloe beach scene. In 1905 and 1907 the construction of two seaside hotels and, in 1908, the completion of a…
2007 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: 2007 year of the surf lifesaver
By Ed Jaggard, Author of Between the Flags It is a truism that Australia is an island continent, surrounded by seas and oceans washing up on some of the world’s finest beaches. For more than a century many Australians and ever increasing numbers of tourists have enjoyed these summer playgrounds, knowing that their safety is…
2006 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: Icarus and Sculpture by the Sea
By David Handley Icarus flew well and his fearlessness grew. He began to think he was quite good at flying. What was this business about charting a middle path, avoiding getting too close to the sun or the sea? Why settle for mediocrity when he, Icarus, could soar? * Ten years of Sculpture by the…
First Landing at Cottesloe?
By Carolyn Ryder, Town of Cottesloe The discovery of our glorious sandy coastline was prompted by a ship that vanished, the fate of which reuncillmains to this day a mystery consigned to the ocean s murky depths. In May 1696, three ships sailed from the Netherlands bound for Western Australia (then known alternately as Terra…
2005 Bondi Exhibition Catalogue Essay: Tamarama Surf Life Saving Club
By Bill Shires, President Tamarama is well known for its unique beauty and cosy atmosphere nestled quietly between Bondi and Bronte Beach, avoiding much of the traffic and the tourists that flock to the Sydney beaches each Summer. Tamarama attracts its own eclectic bunch of locals and tourists, which give it a wonderful ambience and…