Our Previous Exhibitions
2012 Exhibitions
The Antipodean Steampunk Show
Dates: 25 October to 15 December
This fantastical exhibition, the first major Steampunk exhibition in the country, showcases handcrafted Australian Steampunk sculpture, photography, fashion, lighting, illustration, jewellery and communication devices. Steampunk merges a 19th century aesthetic with scientific invention, salvage, and new technology. Artisan has partnered with the Queensland Maritime Museum to include the old nautical, aeronautical and navigational equipment that inspired the style.
Check out ‘The making of The Antipodean Steampunk Show
Long Play: The Glory Days of the 12″ Album Cover
Dates: 23 August to 13 October
This graphic design exhibition takes a sweeping look at the glory days of album cover design – circa 1940 to the late 1980s – and includes covers by famous artists, interactive covers, banned covers and those reflecting the influences of contemporary art and design movements. Long Play was curated by Trevor Moore and Jennifer Hamilton and is presented in partnership with Rockaway Records. If you love music and design, you’ll love this.
Waterlogged: Sherrie Knipe
Dates: 23 August to 13 October
Waterlogged is a collection of exquisite wooden sculptures created by artist Sherrie Knipe over the past five years. Her work captures the ever-present influence of water in her life. Objects such as fish, watering cans, hot water bottles, pegs and shells are a part of a cast of characters Knipe uses and reuses in her intricately carved wooden sculptures. Water acts as an undercurrent that ebbs and flows throughout her practice.
Reboot: Function, Fashion and the Sneaker
21 June – 16 August 2012 | Gallery artisan
Image: Adidas and Jeremy Scott ‘Panda’.
Design, fashion and popular culture merge in this striking shoe design exhibition curated by artisan. Olympic performance shoes rub heels with collaborations between iconic brands and artists and designers including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Yohji Yamamoto, Keith Haring, Mihara Yasuhiro, Undefeated and Alexander McQueen.
The Converse Blank Canvas Project
21 June – 16 August 2012 | Gallery artisan
Images: Rob Corless ‘Con Quest’, Alfredo & Isabel with Miguel Aquilizan ‘Fetish’, Rafael Gomez ‘Converse Consumption’
Photographs taken by Andrea Higgins for artisan
The Converse Blank Canvas Project is a collection of classic Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers creatively customised by leading Australian artists and designers. The shoes will be sold by auction during the exhibition period, with all funds going to the Cathy Freeman Foundation, supporting indigenous education. Artists and designers include: Alfredo and Isabel Aquilizan, Jason Bird, Dean Brough, Rob Corless, Sebastian Di Mauro, Christian Duell, Simone Eisler, Paul Fairweather, Rafael Gomez, Dai Li, Alexander Lotersztain, Charles Robb, Rebecca Ross, Wade Schaare, David Shaw, Gail Sorronda, Simone Tops, Sam Tupou, Judy Watson, and Benjamin Werner.
The Long Tide: Contemporary Ghost Net Art
12 April – 9 June 2012 | Gallery artisan
Image: Photograph by Fiona Morrison
In the gulf of Carpentaria, Indigenous weavers clear the ocean of abandoned fishing nets, known as ‘ghost nets’, to create vibrant vessels and soft sculptures that tell the story of their culture, bringing remote Indigenous communities together and assisting them to ‘care for country’. These colourful woven artworks are presented in partnership with GhostNets Australia, a multidisciplinary Indigenous organisation addressing the ecological and cultural repercussions of ghost nets.
Curator: Tasha Finn
Finitude (V2): Keith Armstrong
12 April – 9 June | Gallery Two
Finitude (V2) by Keith Armstrong is a touch-sensitive, fully interactive installation combining 3D imagery, transparency, moving sculpture, light and sound – investigating the cultural dimensions of sustainability through the lens of ‘time’.
Animated Steel: Heavier Metal – Christopher Trotter
9 February – 31 March 2012 | Gallery Artisan
IMAGE: Photograph by Mike Curtain
Inspired by nature, fast cars, and machinery, Queensland sculptor Christopher Trotter recycles industrial scrap metal into animals, fossils, zany vehicles, and alien creatures. He carefully selects components and his intimate understanding of structure and movement injects life into his works. This selection of sculptures are from the artist’s collection.
Bespunk by Derlot
9 February – 31 March 2012 | Gallery Two
Dr Spunk, the alter ego of leading Brisbane designer, Alexander Lotersztain, presents Bespunk, an exhibition of curbside furniture transformed into inky, sleek design pieces through the application of a black, rubber paint. This desirable collection has a sexy mystique sure to make you re-think tossing that worn sofa.
Download Exhibition Catalogues
View our exhibition catalogues from previous gallery artisan shows below – each is also available for download.