Explosion!!

Last week I was privileged to be part of a lovely night that happens so rarely these days...

Well  - that might just be me... and my lack of going out at the moment??

On Thursday night I was able to get myself to the opening of Un.nat.ur.al Naturally: a littering of frippery and fakery,jewellery+objects.... which is a two person collaborative exhibition by Mel Young + Lauren Simeoni at Metalab gallery in Surry Hills.

And from the moment I entered the tiny gallery of Metalab I was overwhelmed and inspired upon visualising so many jewellery pieces excited me beyond words! And I wasn't the only one!

Many initially commented on how much work these two artists' had accomplished in the two years since the inception of the idea to try and pull an exhibition together {especially with both artists living in two different cities (Adelaide+Sydney) ...!!} 

And then secondly they spoke about how stimulating, sensuous, and fully realised these hand-crafted pieces of jewellery were.

There was colour and texture everywhere you looked! From wooden brooches to cotton thread neck-pieces to plastic fantastic earrings that looked like ripened fruit.

It was all an amazing feast for the eyes!

When talking about the inspiration for the body Mel Young goes on to say:

I am inspired by so many things! The insides of the body, botany, the landscape, ideas, colour, buildings, materials, personal experiences, cultural theory and history, literature, lyrics, other makers, fabric and wallpaper patterns, travelling and being in the world.....

And it is this exploration and joy of life, of nature and everything in-between that you experience when looking in the collector cabinets, and on the purposely built wooden 'cloud' display unit, that was made especially for the show.

It is all happy, energetic and irreverent. Everything looks as if it has just been plucked from the forest. Until you look closer.... and see that it's all faux!

On the Metalab blog there are detailed interviews with both artists and it is worth a look... {If only for the great images of their studios!!} But it is a rare pleasure to be able to have access to the thoughts, working diaries and studio spaces of makers! Its a favourite thing of mine as you already know, to go inside the mind of any artist and see what makes them tick.

Unnatural Naturally is one of THE exhibitions of 2009.
And worth a wee look if you're in the Surry Hills hood.

Its on until 29 October...