Rare Fungal Behaviour in Australia at Touch, Pause, Engage, Keeper Galler, Sydney 21 October 2010

Kristin D'Agostino, a few geeks and some lovely new satellite helpers from across the sea Subliminally Infiltrated the Touch, Pause, Engage opening at Gaffa.  Sadly I could not attend so I am hoping the infiltrators will add some comments to this post. 

Here is what the blog says about Touch, Pause, Engage:

Touch, Pause, Engage offers a glimpse into the Contemporary Jewellery scene in Aotearoa, New Zealand for the Australian community.  Known primarily as the call the referee shouts before two rugby teams lock into a scrum, Touch, Pause, Engage is a call to fully examine and interact with jewellery as you encounter it.

This innovative jewellery showcase is designed to reset the trans-Tasman rivalry between our rugby-loving brothers and sisters, and to build new jewellery relationships.  The show will be displayed in the Keeper Gallery, at the Gaffa Art Complex in Sydney, and will run from 21 October – 2 November 2010.  Opening night, October 21st will also mark the release of an accompanying publication.

Curated by Kristin D’Agostino and Raewyn Walsh, Touch, Pause, Engage, has invited a diverse team of fifteen New Zealand jewellers to submit inventive and inspired works.  Although many of the makers’ practices focus on different issues and are expressed in a wide range of forms, the side is fit and game ready.  The roster is comprised of talented individuals with varying skills, strengths and experience, but who all share in common the goal of pushing the experimental aspects of their jewellery practice.

Nadene Subliminally Infiltrates Nadene at Masterworks 13 October 2010

Subliminally Infiltrating your own show is a hard task because not only do you have to make work for the show, you also have to supply extras for the geeks to wear.  Rather than using any old pieces lurking around, Nadene went the whole hog and made a new bunch of brooches with words on! These provided endless hours of fun as we could say different things standing next to different people. Marvelous!

oi

look hey

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hey you look

Nadenes show looked absolutely awesome with flying brooches and a red sold sticker on one of the necklaces.

at look oi

We were also Subliminally Infiltrating Peter Deckers' installation in the THINKspace where he has bedazzled everyone with laser beams magically pointed at each brooch or ring.  It was most amusing watching people trying to figure out how it was done.  Here Octavia Cook and Renee Bevan admire Sineads Nadene necklace.

I bet Ilse-Marie and Tatjana wished they were subliminally infiltrating too.

  Joeys Me jumped on to BOM wearer Jenny much to her surprise.

 

 Renee was very pleased to be infiltrating too, even if her one didnt have words.

 Nadene's whole family turned up to infiltrate - strangely undadorned I might add.

hey you

Chins up, no double trouble here.



The Royal Walsh! Friday 08 October 2010

Raewyn was supposed to subliminally infiltrate Craig McIntosh at Fingers last week but couldnt make it so the geeks were very pleased to receive an invitation to 'Superstructures' new work by Cheryl Sills and Mia Straka at Royal Jewellery Studio in Kingsland.  Hurrah!  The Royal Walsh!

 This is Kristin's first subliminal infiltration as she has been away in a manger.

 Cath wears Raewyn's wine glass and spoon pendant.

 Nadene wears a small furry creature that likes to masquerade as hairy armpits or chest hair.

 Sharon wears a dark and mysterious caterpillar thingy.

 We were most impressed by the two jewellers benches hiding behind the counter and the giant lego block display aids:

 I have never been to a Royal opening before.  I was most impressed by their flash new cabinets and use of vintage jewellery tools as display ornaments. Jewellery can be such a pain to display nicely and they seem to be great at it.
 

A geek family portrait at the bar next door. Yay chips and beer.

Cath Dearsley Infiltrates 'Talking to Me' at Objectspace

Talking to Me: collecting and making, curated by Philip Clarke and starring Warwick Freeman, Andrea Daly, Simon Gamble, Vita Cochran, Emily Siddell, Genevieve Packer and Richard Stratton was a pretty cool show and how could we not infiltrate it with those big jewellers involved. A rather interesting show investigating what makers like to collect.  Highlights were Simon Gamble's vintage calculator collection and Warwick Freeman's star photos.

Cath modelling her lovely donkey and the lovely hat that she knitted.

Gillian pointing the finger

Raewyn thought this shirt looked rather like wallpaper and therefore tremendously good for displaying her Rat Head trophy.

Renee trying to be incognito.

This is the coolest mouse pendant ever!

Rocko having a good sniff.

Lillian and 'Coral' infiltrating Andrea Daly and Philip Clarke wearing his Broach of the Month Club brooch by Ross Malcolm 'In the Pink'.

Sinead wearing the 'Kiss' Brooch

Sharon appeared to be unadorned at first, but if you hung around her long enough...

At the end of the night, Cath gave Sharon a new brooch of Poppy and Bitsy riding their scooters.  Sweet!



Sharon does an Impromptu Subliminal Infiltration of herself with a little help from the Satellites

Now, Papakura Art Gallery is a long way from the city and I didnt really expect the geeks to turn up, so I didnt plan a Subliminal Infiltration for the opening of Think Twice: a jewellery installation of Manukau School of Visual Arts jewellery department staffers Mary Curtis, Fran Allison, Renee Bevan and Sharon Fitness, especially as this opening was sandwiched between the Lynsay at Masterworks and Cath at Objectspace infiltrations - is there such a thing as too much geeking in one week? Na.

So, at the last minute I decided I could infiltrate my show with me and a photo of me and that would be mildly amusing. Fortuitously, the satellite geeks Jo, Renee and Lillian did some infiltrations of their own, followed by Cath and Nadene when they arrived a little later on. 

I must say that I was extremely impressed by the new look of the Papakura Art Gallery - very professional and white and looking like a very cool gallery space - a long way from the pokey cream hessian wall pinboard community gallery outfit it had last time I ventured this far south.  Well done!

Sharon Fitness wearing Sharon infiltrating Sharon wearing Sharon

Renee Bevan infiltrating Renee Bevan wearing Fran Allison

Broach of the Month Club wearer Joey wearing Renee Bevan infiltrating Bill Riley wearing Renee Bevan

Lillian wearing a Sharon Moo Cow necklace

Renee's David Bielander Shrimp chatting to Mr Rocket

A ghostly woman wearing Mary Curtis infiltrating Mary's neighbour Marianne wearing Mary Curtis

Nadene turned up unadorned (shock horror!) so quickly made a capsicum and pretzel pin.

And Cath wearing Cath infiltrating Frances Hansens show in the entrance gallery 'Nearly Everything'.  I later found our that this rather special little donkey is attached via a magnetic tail which can be attached to the tail end when not being worn.  Magical!

Impromptu Infiltrations are fun!