GEELONG ADVERTISER, Thursday, April 13. 1989 —
Pamela Irving
Some old prints by Berardino Lombardi are among the best works in this exhibition. Utilising simple forms, the circle, square and cross, they are representative of the kind of imagery made 10 years ago. They are peaceful works and skilfully rendered. Some interesting works by Rosemary Coleman incorporate prints, collage and drawing. Not the News,” containing heads of the famous and infamous, requires some investigation to find all the merging figures. lean Knox’s prints in the style of some of the German expressionists contain strong figurative imagery with definite form. Monty Oswald’s monoprint of two people on a pier is also a successful work, rich with color and meaning. The print -1913″ by Anne Twigg is perhaps the most Australian piece in this exhibition representing an example from the wartime period. You can just make out the hats and figures as they stand. The darkess is a metaphor for what they are about to face. The Hayden Real Estate print purchase provides an example of printmaking methods and is representative of thematic responses.
Anglesea artist, Graeme Peebles, is represented in the Geelong Art Gallery’s current exhibition Interior Motives. Peebles has maintained a consistent and distinctive presence among Australian printmakers since his first solo exhibition in 1980. Since then, his finely crafted, quirky mezzotints have been exhibited at the Powell Street Gallery, Melbourne, as well as having been included in international exhibitions such as the West German International Print Biennale in 1981, and the British International Print Biennale in 1982. Interior Motives, the fourth in the series of print exhibitions sponsored by Mitchelton Vintners Ply Ltd, shows the work of nine outstanding printmakers concentrating on figurative themes. Graeme Peebles’ velvety prints, with titles such as ‘White to move and win” and “Still life with ova tortes” (charming spherically-shaped fruit and vegetables) are among the most technically superior and attractive works in Interior Motives. Born in 1955, Peebles is represented in the collections of the National Gallery of Victoria, the Queensland Art Gallery, the Art Gallery of Western Australia, as well as other state and regional galleries. Interior Motives continues until Sunday, April 16, and is accompanied by an illustrated catalogue.
ARTS DIARY “The Hanging Rock” series of paintings by Mahgo Smith-Armstrong at Deakin University. “Recent paintings by Monty Oswald” at Distelfink Gallery, Burwood Road, Hawthorn. • Right: Berardino Lombardi’s untitled 1987 etching, on display at Artery.
