Exhibition of self discovery
TOOWOOMBA’S latest art exhibition asks not only its artists but onlookers the hard-hitting question: “Who are we?”
Arts Council Toowoomba’s fourth members’ exhibition Symbolic Self is on at the Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery from now until July 23.
For this exhibition the gallery suggested a curator to select artists to express who they were in symbolic art pieces.
Long-standing artist Maryika Welter was appointed for the role.
“As an artist or individual we have to accept how our accumulated experiences define ourselves and how what is significant to ourselves also defines us,” she said.
Ms Welter described the exhibition of 25 artworks as a “visual voice”.
“It’s a different exhibition in the sense that I was a curator. I made a selection of specific artists and they gave me a platform of what they were going to create.
“It was sort of like a liaison so I could get the best experience out of it. Sometimes I had to dig deeper with the artists to get out what they really wanted to say.”
Artist Niki Laws created birds from recycled materials, Ann Alcock produced photo art and Danny Daniels created a nostalgic installation with a variety of expressive paintings and innovative works.
Ms Welter said every artwork would have something someone could relate to.
“Working towards a
❝I Sometimes had to dig deeper with the artists to get out what they really wanted to say — Curator Maryika Welter
concept doesn’t always work but having something like a mentor to get that information out of them makes its clearer so they can go on a path of self exploration,” she said.
“Come check out the diversity. It’s not one person saying one thing but 12 people saying ‘here’s a facet of my life that’s important to me or a message I want to tell about you about’,” she said.
Residents can celebrate the exhibition’s launch on Sunday at 1.30pm.