ANNE MACDONALD / PHOTOGRAPHIC ABSTRACTIONS

Anne MacDonald_Cloth (red velvet)_2004_ink jet print_127 x 105cm
Courtesy of the artist and Bett Gallery, Hobart

During 2014 - 2015, the Monash Gallery of Art will be exhibiting a touring group show PHOTOGRAPHIC ABSTRACTIONS.

"Photography has traditionally been linked to representation and is often appreciated for its ability to accurately depict and document the world. Conversely, however, photography has also been closely associated with illusion, ambiguity and abstraction. 

By drilling down into the substances and processes that make photography possible, many of these artists encourage viewers to reflect on the very nature of photography itself. Others use these techniques to explore the geometry and patterns found in the natural and built environments or to allude to more intangible themes such as time, mortality and spirituality." (Photographic Abstractions, Catalogue)

Anne MacDonald will be exhibiting two works in the show, from her Cloth series - photographs influenced by her fascination of the depiction of cloth in paintings by early Renaissance masters.

"Several photographic series exploring the symbolic potential of cloth were developed from my investigation of early Renaissance drapery. Devoid of elaborate arrangements of baroque folds and ornate pattering, Cloth is the most visually reductive of these series. Cloth represents the essence of an idea, a distillation of fabric as a metaphor for aging and mortality." (Anne MacDonald, Artist Statement)


PHOTOGRAPHIC ABSTRACTIONS will be touring to the following venues:

1 February - 2 March 2014 at Wangaratta Art Gallery, VIC
30 March - 11 May 2014 at Redland Art Gallery, Cleveland, QLD
25 March - 10 May 2015 at Grafton Regional Gallery, NSW
21 May - 12 July 2015 at Ararat Regional Gallery, VIC

ANNE MACDONALD / BOWNESS PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZE FINALIST

Anne Macdonald_Party 2_2013_Fine art ink-jet print_110 x 160cm

The Bowness Photography Prize has quickly become one of Australia's most important photography prizes and one the most open and unrestricted prizes for photography. Established in 2006, The Bowness Prize serves to celebrate and promote excellence in both established and emerging photographers. This year’s judging panel includes artist Brook Andrew, The Art Gallery of New South Wales’ Senior Curator Judy Annear, and Monash Gallery of Art Director Shaune Lakin.

Artereal artist Anne MacDonald has been sellected as one of forty-six finalists for the prize from a total of 562 entries, the largest number in the history of The Bowness Prize. She has been selected for her above work titled Party 2 from her recent series Party.

Anne MacDonald endeavours to represent the unrepresentable – death itself. Her photographic series and installations are symbolic distillations of death, eliciting the presence of beauty in objects reminiscent of the body and mortality. A sense of emptiness, of stillness, of silence and fragility and loss pervades Anne MacDonald’s poignant images of the aftermath of a children’s birthday party, exploring the tragedy of transient childhood and youth.

All finalists pieces will exhibit at the Monash Gallery of Art from Friday 4 October - Sunday 3 November 2013. The Winner of the Bowness Photography Prize will be announced the evening prior to the opening on Thursday 3 October.

We wish Anne the best of luck and congratulate her on such a magnificent achievement.