The Sculpture of Bronwyn Oliver is the first major survey of the work of Australian artist Bronwyn Oliver (1959–2006). Though her career was cut short by her premature death at age forty-seven, the body of work presented within this exhibition has a pulse—writhing with movement and flickering with energy.
Oliver, a Sydney-based artist who undertook several stints in France and England during her life—notably studying at London’s Chelsea School of Art in 1982–83, and winning the prestigious Möet & Chandon Award in 1994—is renowned for her large-scale sculptures, which can be seen in various public and private locations around Australia (including Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall, Adelaide’s Hotel Intercontinental and Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens). Ewington’s survey aims to reconcile the many different outcomes of her oeuvre—showcasing maquettes for public art commissions (some executed, others not), prints on paper, and numerous smaller wall- and floor-based sculptures, most of which would have been first exhibited with her long-term gallerist and friend, Roslyn Oxley.
Helen Hughes is research curator at Monash University Museum of Art, and an assistant lecturer in Art History and Curatorial Practice in the Faculty of Art, Design & Architecture at Monash University.
Curated by Julie Ewington
