Industrial Cathedral

Industrial Cathedral
"Industrial Cathedral" charcoal on paper 131 x 131 cm Jane Bennett. Finalist in 1998 Dobell Drawing Prize Art Gallery of NSW Finalist 1998 Blake Prize Winner 1998 Hunter's Hill Open Art Prize

About Me

My photo
Sydney, NSW, Australia
I'm an Industrial Heritage Artist who paints "en plein air".If it's damaged, derelict, doomed and about to disappear, I'll be there to paint it.
Showing posts with label Frances Keevil Gallery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Frances Keevil Gallery. Show all posts

Tuesday 17 February 2015

Banners, Millers Point

plein air oil painting of heritage terraces in Millers Point by artist Jane Bennett
 "Dalgety Terrace Millers Point"
2014 oil on canvas 46 x 61cm 
Collection : Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW
Enquiries about similar paintings 
The Harbour Control Tower looms ominously over the row of ramshackle terraces on the sandstone block wall of Dalgety Road.
Some of the houses sport protest banners :"Millers Point not 4 sale" "Our community is worth more than money"
Fortunately some of the banners were still there long enough for me to paint them, however, a few weeks afterwards the Housing NSW Millers Point Relocation Team had torn them down.
Housing NSW's Relocation Officers and their security and "cleansing" teams have been removing banners and photos of residents throughout Millers Point. The banners on the Garrison Church Rectory and on St Brigid's Church were removed in January 2015.  

plein air oil painting of heritage terraces in Millers Point by artist Jane Bennett
 "Dalgety Terrace Millers Point"
2014 oil on canvas 46 x 61cm 
Collection : Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW
Enquiries about similar paintings
Luckily I finished painting this canvas just before the roadwork started.
I was set up between 2 of the hideous new apartments built several years ago to replace a set of old Maritime Services Board warehouses.
plein air oil painting of heritage terraces in Millers Point by artist Jane Bennett
 "Dalgety Terrace Millers Point"
2014 oil on canvas 46 x 61cm
Collection : Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW
Enquiries about similar paintings
To add insult to injury,there is now a serious attempt to remove even the name "Millers Point" from the suburb- see Don't erase Millers Point Facebook Page
This canvas, which I exhibited in my solo exhibition "Under the Hammer" Frances Keevil Gallery 2014, was recently acquired for the collection of the Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW.
My canvases are banners that can never be torn down.

Sunday 30 November 2014

Patina- Beautiful decay

plein air painting of the now demolished Hammerhead Crane on Garden Island by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
 GIHC16 'Detail Hammerhead Crane'
 2014 oil on canvas 28 x 36cm
SOLD
PRIVATE COLLECTION : SYDNEY

In my major solo exhibition "Under the Hammer" at the Frances Keevil Gallery there are several paintings of the Hammerhead Crane seen from various vantage points in the middle distance.
However, I also painted several canvases of close-up details that at first sight look like abstract works. I can assure you, they are completely realistic. They just focus on a tiny portion of the subject, unlike most of my work. These paintings have been wildly popular, but I wonder whether it is just because onlookers have become less capable of coping with the complexity of an entire scene, and are only able to appreciate a fragment.

plein air painting of the now demolished Hammerhead Crane on Garden Island by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
GIHC18 'Girder, Hammerhead Crane
2014 oil on canvas 61 x 91cm 

FINALIST : 2015 HORNSBY ART PRIZE
Enquiries

Now I can't overstate how much I hate the flat picture plane!
And "modern" art has been all about "the surface", flatness and shallowness, in more ways than one.
In my paintings, I want depth, perspective and layers; physically, emotionally and intellectually.
So even in my canvases of close-up details, there are hidden depths and a sense of space extending beyond the picture plane, especially in the drawings and paintings I created while looking up, standing directly underneath the centre of the crane. I feel that the painting with the greatest sense of space and depth is  "Under the Hammerhead Crane" seen below.
However these canvases of details of the Hammerhead Crane have given me the chance to reveal the transmutations, ambiguities and impermanence of form by the beauty of its decaying exterior.
plein air painting of the now demolished Hammerhead Crane on Garden Island by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
 GIHC20 'Under the Hammerhead Crane'
2014 oil on canvas 61 x 91cm
 
Enquiries

Patina is the visible sign of age on the surface of a material. It panders to our growing desire for the proof of authenticity; a backlash against the homogenized and generic corporate spaces that have taken over so much of our world. Materials are imbued with a history that speaks of ‘natural’ processes accrued over time, such as distressed wood, weather-beaten stone or brick, faded wallpaper, well-worn textiles, rusted ironwork, greening copper - the valued hallmarks of "shabby chic" in upmarket interior decor.
If you lose the texture, you lose your history.
The irony is that patina is seen as adding "authenticity", even though it has been caused by the degeneration and instability of the object.
I think of rust on a metal structure as though it is blood dripping from a wound.
Worship of patina can be seen as yet another symptom of the post-modern obsession with surface at the expense of ‘authentic’ depth.
Patina can be a by-product of the natural process of ageing, but it also functions as a memorial to disaster, natural or otherwise- the architectural equivalent of post-traumatic stress, showing the ‘wound’ inflicted by the trauma of the past as it reverberates down into the present.
Patina straddles the space and time between construction and ruin. The allure of patina lies in its instability; because any attempt to stabilise it affects the essential process.
The art critic Walter Benjamin said that the ‘real’ is only revealed in moments of ruination.
As with ruins, patina represents a fragment that suggests the meaning of the whole. Patina holds together contradictions, reveals historical depth, and yet ironically also remembrance and even healing.

Under the Hammer
Exhibition dates: 
Open from Tuesday 18th November –  Sunday 7th December

Sunday 2 June 2013

Not the Writers Festival- Exhibition of Pyrmont Paintings by Jane Bennett at 2013 Pyrmont Festival

I exhibited these historic paintings of Pyrmont at the 2013 Pyrmont festival in conjunction with the Frances Keevil Gallery
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival





















The weather couldn't have been better for the 2013 Pyrmont Festival. A couple of the calmest, sunniest autumn days I've ever experienced in Sydney.
This festival is held on the former Water-Police site, where I used to have several studios during the late 1980s - mid 1990s.
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival





















This time the festival in Pirrama Park was for the whole weekend, which gave many more people a chance to see my exhibition.
 I had brought 55 paintings on canvas and board for the exhibition. The largest was the 61 x 183cm canvas of a panorama of "Union Square" and the smallest was a tiny canvas of a strange little sign on top of the former F.L. Barker/Waite and Bull woolstore on the corner of Pyrmont Street and Pyrmont Bridge Road.
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival
contact me



















This year I had written 2 small booklets about my paintings and drawings of Pyrmont. The text was partly based on some of the posts in this blog.
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival
I printed some prototype copies as an experiment, intending to display them at the festival. I partly wanted people to be able to read the text as, even with the help given to me by  my gallerist Frances Keevil I can't always manage to talk to everyone who wants to know something about a particular painting. My other goal was to get some feedback. 
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival

One of these booklets, "Pyrmont - Shadows of the Past" was about my charcoal, ink and gouache drawings of Pyrmont  in a simple, classic black and white format. 
The other booklet "Pyrmont Paintings" displayed the paintings to great advantage on a dark blue background. but unfortunately this choice made the black text almost invisible. The printer service had offered a very limited choice of templates, fonts and colours. I had used them because I had been flat out painting and exhibiting since the beginning of this year and had very little time or energy left to prepare for the Pyrmont Festival. The booklets were an afterthought. I wrote and designed them both in a single day to meet the deadline for a discount printing deal.
In a way, this was good. I have a tendency to perfectionism, and faced with limitless choice and no deadline I can become paralyzed with fear. I thought that I needed to write something, anything at all, however lame, and then improve it.
I wasn't actually intending to sell them at all. I gave copies to the people who bought paintings, or were seriously interested in purchasing. I also gave a couple to the gallery so that we could . I was stunned at the number of people who flatly insisted on paying $10, $12, $15 or even $20 for a booklet! I tried to insist that they were free, as they were just experiments. Apart from a misplaced comma and a couple of oddly proportioned margins the black and white booklet looked very elegant, but the beautiful blue background of the painting book had unfortunately made the writing completely illegible and there were a couple of font discrepancies. Trying to finish the 2nd booklet by the midnight deadline had nearly sent me cross-eyed.
I pointed out the errors, but it didn't seem to faze anyone; they still insisted on paying for them! 
We sold over 50 booklets, and we weren't actually even trying to sell them at all!
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival
contact me



















I only have one of each left now, and I'd better hang on to them as I'd like to have them in front of me when I finally sit down with the gallery's designer and plan a better publication.
So, it's not yet the Writer's Festival, and I'm not an author.
However the reaction has given me a great deal of confidence. People have been nagging me for years to write about my paintings, but now I know that they are serious.
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival in Pirrama Park
"Decisions, decisions... which one should I buy?"
Exhibition of paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett
at the 2013 Pyrmont Festival






















As well as my unexpected excursion into literature, it was a very interesting and successful event on a number of different levels.
I reconnected with lots of people who once lived or worked in Pyrmont as well as many of the new residents of Jacksons Landing and the apartments on top of Pyrmont Point.
There were several sales and I am now preparing to paint an extremely large and prestigious commission resulting from a contact made on these 2 days.
Paintings of Pyrmont by Jane Bennett in Pirrama Park

Saturday 16 March 2013

"Lashed to the Mast" - Plein Air painting as extreme sport

I wanted to try painting a large canvas of the spectacular view of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf for my solo exhibition "From the Hungry Mile to Barangaroo" which is now on display at the Frances Keevil Gallery.
I never do anything by halves, so I got the biggest canvas that would fit inside my station wagon - 122 x 183cm!
suitcase with studio equipment of plein air artist Jane Bennett
My Artist's Studio in a suitcase
I always pack my paint, brushes and other necessary items such as lunch into trolley luggage, as it is less of a strain on my back than carrying a bag. When I use a small easel, such as a French box easel, I also pack it into trolley luggage so I can roll or drag it rather than have to carry it.
I was worried about the canvas going hang-gliding over Sydney Harbour, or even snapping in two which happened while I was painting the Sydney Heritage Fleet from Blackwattle Bay.
The solution was to take a studio easel as well as a French box easel, and to use cable ties to secure the canvas to the studio easel, and the easel to a large chunk of timber.
The most important thing is not to forget to bring a good sharp pair of scissors to remove the cable ties!
The studio easel had casters so I could move it around without too much trouble. I used the French box easel to store my paint, medium and brushes.
canvas tied to studio easel by plein air painter Jane Bennett
I've had to cable tie the large canvas to my studio easel













The renowned 19th century marine painter J.M.W.Turner used to boast that he was once "lashed to the mast" to witness a storm at sea as inspiration.
canvas tied to studio easel by plein air painter Jane Bennett
I've had to cable tie the large canvas
to my studio easel- and then cable tie
the easel to a timber block!
I've always loved Turner's paintings and now I feel that I am literally following in his footsteps!
timber block and easel used by plein air painter Jane Bennett
Timber block and easel
Quite literally.
Like Turner,who also had a predilection for painting enormous canvases, I'm also very short, so I had to stand on this useful block of wood so I could reach up to paint the sky!
timber block and easel used by plein air painter Jane Bennett
Timber block and easel used by
plein air painter Jane Bennett
It felt like a long way down!
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
Starting a large plein air painting
of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
about 7.30am.
I like to prime the canvas with a coloured ground before I paint. This technique is called "imprimatura" and it helps to reduce the glare reflected by a white canvas outdoors, as well as giving more depth to the tones.
Usually I prime a canvas blue when I'm about to paint Sydney Harbour, but this black primed canvas was originally intended for an interior of the Eveleigh Railway workshops.
Another essential ingredient is really good coffee, as you can see from the plunger on the chair. I always pack a non-leaking thermos of hot water in my trolley luggage. Unfortunately the milk has to be longlife UHT milk, as fresh milk will go off in the sun by the afternoon, and there isn't always any shade where I paint, as I mostly paint on wharves or industrial sites.
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about 8am
Black actually turned out to be a good choice. 
The day started bright and sunny, but the clouds gathered quickly. 
The calm morning Sydney Harbour seascape I had originally intended to paint was soon transformed into a brooding study of an impending storm.
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about 9am
 Plein air painting is full of abrupt changes of mood and direction, which is why I enjoy it so much.
It feels almost as much like a sport as art.
The amount of physical strength involved in just being able to handle a canvas of this size out in the open air is surprising. I have to work out just so I can keep lugging my easels up and down stairs.
The other thing that is underestimated by the people who view the finished canvas in a pristine white-walled gallery, is the amount of concentration required to sustain the atmosphere over the hours required to finish a work of this size.
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about 9.30am
 Light, shadow and colours of the sea and sky change constantly, and it takes the reflexes of an elite tennis player to even attempt to capture these fleeting effects.
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about 10am
















Apart from the skill needed to paint these fleeting effects, it also takes a great deal of experience and judgement to decide which are worth capturing.
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about 11am
 By noon, I had most of the canvas painted,and it was looking very promising, but an hour later the weather had changed dramatically.
Dark clouds started to cover the sky and the sea changed colour from turquoise to prussian blue, then to slate grey.
The wind whipped up, and I had to decide whether it was too risky to continue.
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about noon
If I decided to continue the painting on another day with similar weather conditions, there was the risk of not being able to complete it in time for my exhibition. On the other hand, if I pressed on, it might get so windy that it would be physically dangerous to keep on painting.
I had almost as much canvas to cope with as some of the smaller yachts out on the harbour, who were starting to have trouble.
And if I wasn't careful, my canvas would have travelled just as fast in the wrong direction!
Starting a large plein air painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
My large plein air painting of
Goat Island from Moore's Wharf
at about noon
 Also, the colour, mood and light conditions were so different from when I started that it would mean repainting almost everything!
The sensible choice probably would have been to put the canvas away and start a small study of the stormy conditions.
But I liked the dramatic light effects so much that I took a calculated risk and quickly repainted the canvas to reflect the changed conditions.
plein air oil painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
The completed canvas
'Storm, Goat Island' 2013
oil on canvas 122 x 183cm
I had to work very quickly. I didn't dare take a break for lunch in case my canvas wouldn't be there when I got back.
But I'm glad that I took the risk, as the canvas has really captured the colour and mood.
The brilliant yellow buoys surrounding the excavation of the North Barangaroo Headland Park contrast strongly with the ominous sky and dark, choppy sea.
plein air oil painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
'Storm, Goat Island' 2013
oil on canvas 122 x 183cm
 Art vs. life!
plein air oil painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
'Storm, Goat Island' 2013
oil on canvas 122 x 183cm
This photo best shows the painting in context with the landscape.
However large the canvas actually is, it will always look like a postage stamp compared with the real thing. I can assure you that this canvas is a lot bigger than I am!(I am 5' 1" which is fairly short even for a girl.)
By the time I took these photos, I was so worried about the canvas blowing away that I had to cable tie it to the container - I didn't dare risk putting it on the easel!

plein air oil painting of Goat Island from Moore's Wharf by artist Jane Bennett
'Storm, Goat Island' 2013
oil on canvas 122 x 183cm

Tuesday 12 March 2013

Barangaroo - Where Art, Architecture, History, Politics and Economics meet

The discussion "Why the hullaballoo about Barangaroo? Where Art, Architecture, History, Politics and Economics meet" was held on Sunday 10th March, in the courtyard of the Frances Keevil Gallery, where my solo exhibition "From the Hungry Mile to Barangaroo" continues until Sunday March 24th.
This was a brave experiment.
Neither Frances nor myself have ever put together anything like this before.
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery














It was well worth it! The conversation between the panel members was informative, entertaining and at times passionate and stirring. The audience was enthralled - many of them stayed on afterwards to ask questions, take photos and even get autographs!
Barangaroo discussion by Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Meet the distinguished panel: 
From left to right : 
Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
And the facilitator for the event, the renowned investigative journalist, Quentin Dempster.
From left to right - 
 Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM, Quentin Dempster, and Frances Keevil, Director of the Frances Keevil Gallery.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Dr Jack Mundey AO, is the legendary elder statesman of activism. He spoke movingly of the history of the famous Green Bans, in which as secretary of the New South Wales Builders' Labourers Federation (BLF), he led a successful campaign to protect the built and natural environment of Sydney from inappropriate development.
Apart from his unique credentials as a champion of heritage and sustainable urban planning, Jack had played an important part at the beginning of the story of the Barangaroo development.
 In 2006, Jack was a member of the jury to choose the design for Barangaroo. The jury had unanimously selected
 the design by the team headed by Philip Thalis - which bizarrely has now been completely discarded by LendLease, the developers of the site.
Incidentally, LendLease's design had come a distant second in the initial competition.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Philip Thalis, deep in thought.
Philip Thalis is the principal of Hill Thalis Architecture + Urban Projects. 
His design team won the competition to design Barangaroo - yet their design has not been adopted for the actual construction.
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Philip Thalis gave a thought-provoking speech pointing out flaws in both the process and the design.The contrast between the potential of what Barangaroo, could and should have been, and the unfortunate reality was made completely clear to the audience.
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
John McInerney, previously for many years a Councillor of the City of Sydney, is now the "President of Australians for Sustainable Development". He has a wealth of experience in how councils and the State government interact throughout the stages of planning and development, and provided startling images of the impact of the Barangaroo buildings which are currently under construction.
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
John McInerney examined many of the peculiarities of the entire planning process of the controversial Barangaroo project, and exposed some very disturbing implications for the future of Sydney. Most people in the audience had not previously grasped the consequences of some of these decisions and were completely gobsmacked.
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
 
Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery

Alex Greenwich MP in action. 
His speech about the development of Barangaroo being used as a "Trojan Horse" to  force the displacement of the residents of Millers Point, was passionate and articulate.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Dr Graham Jahn AM, Director of Planning and Transport at the City of Sydney.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Dr Graham Jahn AM, added some background detail.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Quentin Dempster was a wonderful choice as facilitator for the discussion. His polite, yet probing questions brought out the best in the panel. The chaotic and complex narrative of the planning process behind Barangaroo was revealed to the eager audience.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney - 3 champions of social justice.

Barangaroo discussion by Quentin Dempster, Philip Thalis, Dr Jack Mundey AO, Alex Greenwich MP, John McInerney, Dr Graham Jahn AM at the Jane Bennett exhibition at the Frances Keevil Gallery
Jack and me 















 
 
I can't thank all the participants enough for their wonderful efforts to make this discussion a success!
And I am just as grateful to Lynn and Frances, Directors of the Frances Keevil Gallery for stepping well outside their comfort zone to host this event at the gallery and to organize it so well.