Art

'Australiana to Zeitgeist' by Melissa Loughnan

Melbourne art expert Melissa Loughnan established her first gallery, Utopian Slumps, in 2007 when she was just 24.  In the years that have passed since then, Melissa has become a prominent voice and respected expert in Australia’s contemporary art world. Now, she’s an author, too.

Australiana to Zeitgeist is Melissa’s brilliant new book – an encyclopaedic resource covering the diverse world of contemporary Australian art. Today she shares an excerpt from the book’s closing chapter.

Written
by
Melissa Loughnan

The closing chapter from Melissa Loughnan‘s new book on contemporary Australian art, Australiana to Zeitgeist. Read Z for Zeitgeist below! Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Z for Zeitgesit covers Contemporary Australian artists that embody the spirit of their generation, including Andy Boot. Pictured here is his installation C C, 2014, featuring pieces created from concrete and UV-print on metal mesh. Photos – courtesy of Joachim Schulz and  Melissa Loughnan.

‘I hope that Australiana to Zeitgeist will appeal to a broad audience… some people will read it cover to cover, but it will likely be flipped through out of order and perhaps used as a reference guide as different names and themes pop up,’ says Melissa. A spread from the chapter G for Geometry, which profiles painter Esther Stewart. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

The book, which was designed by graphic design and typography whizz Stuart Geddes. From H for Happening featuring installation artist Rebecca Baumann. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Video stills by another Z for Zeitgeist artist, Marian Tubbs, from the exhibition transmission detox, 2015. Photos – courtesy of Marian Tubbs and Melissa Loughnan.

The opening chapter of the book, A for Australiana. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Adam John Cullen is also profiled in Z for Zeitgeist. Mixed media works from his exhibition Forever Stuff in 2015 can be seen here. Photos – courtesy of Christian Capurro and Melissa Loughnan.

The book’s chapter, W for Writing, which focuses on the use of text in contemporary local art. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Melbourne-based author and former gallerist Melissa Loughnan. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Writer
Melissa Loughnan
19th of May 2017

I was approached by Thames and Hudson to write Australiana to Zeitgeist in late 2012, and my motivation in doing so was to increase the audience for contemporary Australian art. At the time I was running Utopian Slumps, a non-profit turned commercial gallery in Melbourne, and wished that the artists I was supporting and exhibitions I was putting on had more reach. I hope I’ve put together an accessible entry into what otherwise might be considered challenging Australian art practices, and that this might increase their understanding and appreciation.

The book is thematic, which ultimately fed my selection of artists, as once I had the themes I then started thinking about which artist’s practices and works are strongest in those fields. My other self-set criteria was to look at ‘under-represented’ artists. This doesn’t necessarily mean not commercially represented, although that could be the case, but also artists who are emerging or early career, or mid-career artists who have not yet received the level of attention that I think they deserve.

Over the five-years of putting this together there have been many highs and lows! The most challenging part was trying to find the time and distance to write and edit while operating a gallery, then while pregnant and in the early months of first-time motherhood. The highlight was the communication that I had with the artists, and their invaluable input and feedback at various drafting stages.

The art world in Australia is very small and a small number of collectors and institutions support a considerable number of artists. So I hope that this book might be a factor in increasing the audience for, and eventually the support of, contemporary Australian art.

I think that my selection of artists is generally a bit riskier and newer than those featured in other resources. Don’t expect to see the Archibald winners of the last 10 years in this book!

Z for Zeitgeist

The German word ‘zeitgeist’ defines the prevailing spirit or thoughts of an era, typifying the general moral, intellectual or cultural climate of the time. The word comes from the writings of nineteenth-century German philosopher Georg Hegel, who believed that art reflected the culture of its age and thus exemplified its zeitgeist. We can see this in the art of the 1960s, which encapsulated a decade of revolution and change. During this decade environmental activism propelled the land art movement, and a desire to bring art to the masses inspired pop art.

In Australia the late-nineteenth-century Heidelberg School artists depicted colonialism and rural life. It was the first movement to portray the harshness of the Australian bush. To do this they adopted the painting method of en plein air, as practised by the French impressionists. This group of artists including Frederick McCubbin, Tom Roberts and Arthur Streeton, were also known as ‘Australian impressionists’.

The Angry Penguins comprised artists Arthur Boyd, Sidney Nolan, Albert Tucker and Joy Hester. They came together in the 1940s to shake up the conservative nature of the art establishment of the era. They were at the forefront of the artists of their generation, instigating a new modernism in painting.

Contemporary Australian artists that embody the spirit of their generation include Hany Armanious and Mikala Dwyer. Since the 1990s Armanious has tested the limits of his audiences’ understanding of art by including blobs of hot glue, worm castings and outdoor furniture in his sculptures and installations. His work has a distinctly grungy appearance, which has helped to lead the zeitgeist of contemporary Australian art from the decorative into the cerebral. Dwyer, also active from the 1990s, has promoted anti-monumental installation through her invisible sculptures and suspended mobile works.

Andy Boot, Adam John Cullen and Marian Tubbs are part of the next generation of Australian artists who form a new material and aesthetic era. Boot references Internet and digital culture in his work while retaining an interest in physical form. Cullen combines ancient and contemporary materials to reflect on the culture and economics of today. Tubbs uses digital technology to slow down the eye, and in the process analyses the fast-paced nature of our society.

More in depth profiles of Boot, Cullen and Tubbs follow this chapter introduction in Australiana to Zeitgeist. Retailing for $49.95, the book is available to purchase online, here, or at book stores throughout Australia.

A new A-Z of contemporary Australian art, Australiana to Zeitgeist. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files.

Recent Art