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Venetian sprawl
by Virginia Cook
Thanks to this year's Venice Biennale, international audiences can continue to experience first hand the unique artistic salute to Australian suburbia by the late Howard Arkley.
The Melbourne-based visual artist died in late July, but his exhibition The Home Show continues to draw visitors to the Australian Pavilion in Venice.
The Home Show is the Australia Council's official exhibit at the 48th Venice Biennale, the oldest of the world's regular contemporary art expositions.
Arkley held an Australia Council Visual Arts/Craft Fund Fellowship, and his work is represented in major national and international collections.
Speaking to Artbeat, Anna Waldmann, Manager of the Visual Arts/Craft Fund said 'Arkley's works are perfectly suited to the Australian Pavilion. They have offered an artificial suburb and fly screen doors through which one enters domestic settings of remarkable fabric patterns and colour laminations.'
'If you think about the very different exhibitions we have sent to the Venice Biennale in the past few years, a show such as Howard Arkley's will complete the picture of the great talent and variety in the contemporary Australian visual arts. The exhibition has been one of the most genuinely successful and popular of the more than 50 country pavilions: bright, intense and yet eerily quiet just like our suburbs,' she added.
In Europe, the initial response to The Home Show was enthusiastic. Cherie Booth QC, wife of the British PM, rated Arkley's exhibition the best she had seen when she visited the Biennale. Charles Saatchi, advertising mogul and an influential collector of art in Britain agreed and Paloma Picasso has been recommending friends visit the Australian Pavilion. Arkley's exhibition also received a very favourable response from many European and American museum directors and curators.
It's this type of exposure to broader international markets that prompted the Australia Council to become so actively involved with the Venice Biennale.
While Australia's involvement in the Biennale began in 1954, it was in 1978 that the Australia Council first started selecting the official artist and funding Australia's participation.
In 1988, Australia was granted one of the last available spaces in the Biennale Gardens for a national pavilion. Arthur Boyd was the first artist to have his work displayed in the new Pavilion designed by noted Australian architect Philip Cox.
Promoting Australian arts is a core part of the Australia Council's work.
As far as Australia Council Chair Dr Margaret Seares is concerned, 'for too long international arts touring has been seen as a flag waving exercise. It is important we recognise not only the central role the arts play in blazing a trail for Australia overseas but also the part international trade plays in growing and sustaining our arts.'
To this end the Australia Council is supporting international activities involving Australian artists and arts organisations, such as:
- the European tour of Black Swan Theatre/Belvoir St Company B's acclaimed production of Cloudstreet;
- Australia's participation in the Festival of Pacific Arts (in Noumea in late 2000);
- Australia Week in London as part of the Centenary of Federation celebrations
- the Australian arts program for Hannover World Expo 2000; and
- international promotion of Australian writing through residencies, promotional tours and translations.
Importantly the Council is also currently involved with the Australia International Cultural Council.
Dr Seares poses the question: 'I mean how do you measure the benefits of thousands of theatre goers attending a major piece of literary theatre such as Cloudstreet that is uncompromising in its "Australianness" and use of Australian idiom? How many people who see Bangarra Dance Theatre will become intrigued by Australia and determined to experience it for themselves? How many more tours of other Australia drama, dance, music and performance will follow?'
'What we can measure is the $25 million that has been returned to the coffers of arts companies and performing artists directly as a result of the Australian Performing Arts Market. For some companies, this is entirely new revenue.'
Meanwhile the works of Howard Arkley will remain on display in Venice until the Biennale closes on 7 November.
The Australia Council is within the Communications, Information Technology and the Arts portfolio.
Contact
Australia Council 02 9950 9000, toll free 1800 226 912 or email mail@ozco.gov.au or visit their website at www.ozco.gov.au
Australia International Cultural Council
| The Australia International Cultural Council was formed in February 1998 at the Adelaide Cultural Relations Summit convened by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer.
Its members include the Federal Minister for the Arts, Peter McGauran, as well as leading arts entrepreneurs, festival directors, senior arts agency officials and significant representatives of business and government. The Council is developing a three-year strategy to develop coordinated international promotion of Australia's $19 billion arts and cultural industry. Key elements of the strategy include:
|