When Rainforests Glowed – The Prehistory of MankindRetrospective ArtCloth Exhibition@Eden GardensMarie-Therese Wisniowski

Preamble
My artwork has appeared in a number of exhibitions which has been featured on this blog spot. For your convenience I have listed these posts below.
ArtCloth: Engaging New Visions (Marie-Therese Wisniowski - Curator's Talk)
Sequestration of CO₂ (Engaging New Visions) M-T. Wisniowski
Codes – Lost Voices (ArtCloth Installation) M-T. Wisniowski
Unleashed: The Rise of Australian Street Art (Art Exhibition) Various Artists
Merge and Flow (SDA Members Exhibition) M-T. Wisniowski
The Journey (Megalo Studio) M-T. Wisniowski
Another Brick (Post Graffiti ArtCloth Installation) M-T. Wisniowski
ArtCloth Swap & Exhibition
My Fifteen Year Contribution to the '9 x 5' Exhibition
When Rainforests Ruled (Purple Noon Art & Sculpture Gallery) M-T. Wisniowski
When Rainforests Glowed (Eden Gardens Gallery) M-T. Wisniowski
My Southern Land (Galerie 't Haentje te Paart, Netherlands) M-T. Wisniowski
The Last Exhibition @ Galerie ’t Haentje the Paart
Mark Making on Urban Walls @ Palm House (Post Graffiti Art Work)
Fleeting - My ArtCloth Work Exhibited @ Art Systems Wickham Art Gallery
Timelines: An Environmental Journey
My Contribution to Lake Macquarie's Water Exhibition
The Effects of Global Warming - ArtCloth Exhibition@Rathmines Heritage Centre’s Boiler Room
ATASDA's ‘A Touch of Gold’ 50th Anniversary Exhibition - Part I
ATASDA’s ‘A Touch of Gold’ 50th Anniversary Exhibition - Part II
ATASDA's 'A Touch of Gold’ 50th Anniversary Exhibition - Part III

Introduction
The retrospective exhibition was held at Eden Gallery in Sydney. The underlying theme centered on Environmental Art – one aspect of my art continuum. The technique involves disperse dyes and the art medium is delustered polyester.

All artworks have been exhibited before, but not necessarily in the same exhibition. The philosophy underlying my “Environmental Art” strives to prick your consciousness to garner support for why sustainability is a necessary gift for life in general.

Entrance to Eden Gallery.
“Flames Unfurling” (left), “Summer Bolt” (center) and "Myaree1" (right).

When Rainforests Glowed – The Prehistory of Mankind
Artist’s Statement
The interaction between man and the environment is of growing concern as the human population is accelerating towards the 9 billion mark. Our quintessential needs of food, clothing, shelter, minerals and energy is placing enormous pressure on the biosphere. In particular, the rainforests that were so prevalent in the Carbonaceous era are becoming a diminishing feature on the Earth.

Sequestration of CO₂

Sequestration: Detail photograph of diurnal pattern of photosynthesis.

Sequestration: Detail photograph of diurnal pattern of respiration.

The following details some interesting facts about rainforests: * Rainforests are home to 50% of the world’s animals and plant life. * Generally rainforests are being destroyed at a rate of 246,000 square kilometers a year. * The average rainfall of rainforests in general is around 2,000 mm per year. * The temperature of the rainforests is in the vicinity of 20-30^oC. * Rainforests are in North and South America, Islands such as Indonesia, Africa and Australia etc. - that is, in tropical zones. * Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface; now they cover a mere 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years.

Just like the screen printed poster art of yesteryear, I am trying to win the hearts and minds of viewers, not with slogans and defiant images but with artworks that contain luscious, deep colors, shadows and movement which expose rich surface layers, depth and imagery whilst hinting at elusive qualities — the spiritual, the miraculous, the resplendent, the majestic, the threatened. This underlying content provides a way of trying to hypnotize the viewer into unconscious support for sustainability.

Flames Unfurling.

Life Returning.

Re-Growth.

In prehistory (i.e. before history was chronicled by man) human beings had a steady state and sustainable relationship with the environment. This exhibition rests on the premise that rainforests are fragile in the modern world and are a threatened biological resource. Hence we need to move to the prehistory of man when rainforests glowed in order to develop once again a steady state and sustainable relationship with the environment.

Autumn Bolt (Four Australian Seasons).

Summer Bolt (Four Australian Seasons).

Winter Bolt (Four Australian Seasons).

Spring Bolt (Four Australian Seasons).

Technique and Media
Technique
Whilst most artworks are framed and so may appear to be on canvas, my medium of choice is a delustered polyester satin fabric, which gives further emphasis to the fragility of the content of the artworks. All works employ my signature technique that I invented, namely, my MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique involves disperse dyes and native flora on delustered polyester fabric.

Myaree I (left) and Sherbrooke (right).

Myaree I (full view).

Sherbrooke (full view).

The MSDS technique employs disperse dyes and involves hand printing multiple resists and multiple overprinted layers employing numerous color plates, mixed media and low relief plant materials.

Dancing Lightscapes (left) and Reflections (right).

Dancing Lightscapes (full view).

Reflections (full view).

The completed works are rich in color, light, shade, contrast, movement and depth. The multiple layers also imbue a painterly aesthetic and textural, three-dimensional quality to the finished ArtCloth works. Each print is unique and cannot be replicated.

Warrawee I (left), Warrawee II (center) and Cradle Mountain Splendour (right).

Warrawee I (full view).

Warrawee II (full view).

Cradle Mountain Splendour (full view).

In sublimation printing, once the dye has been painted on a paper and is dry, the painted side of the paper is placed on top of the fabric surface that is to be dyed. Then heat is applied via an iron or a heat press (under pressure) to the back of the dry, dyed paper. The dye vaporizes from the paper and infuses into the surface of the target fabric. The vapor dye reacts with the target fabric surface and adheres to it via ‘attractive’ forces. The heat of the iron serves a dual purpose: (a) it vaporizes the dye; (b) it assists the dye to infuse into the fabric surface and adhere to it.

Shadow Play (full view).

Memories (full view).

Eden GardensResource ReviewMarie-Therese Wisniowski

Preamble
For you convenience I have listed below posts on this blogspot that featured Museums and Galleries.
When Rainforests Ruled
Some Textiles@The Powerhouse Museum
Textile Museum in Tilburg (The Netherlands)
Eden Gardens
Maschen (Mesh) Museum@Tailfingen
Museum Lace Factory@Horst(The Netherlands)
Expressing Australia – Art in Parliament House
TextielLab & TextielMuseum – 2013
The Last Exhibition @ Galerie ’t Haentje te Paart
Paste Modernism 4 @ aMBUSH Gallery & The Living Mal
El Anatsui – Five Decades@Carriageworks
The Australian Museum of Clothing and Textiles
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Nordiska Museet (The Nordic Museum)
Tarndwarncoort (Tarndie)
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part I
Egyptian Museum Cairo - Part II
Masterpieces of the Israel Museum

Introduction
"Eden Gardens" is an interesting venue to hold an art exhibition since its primary objective is to invigorate your sensual perceptions along the boundaries between art and nature. As one aspect of my art continuum is “Environmental Art” using my MSDS technique and disperse dyes on a delustered polyester medium, you would think that my artwork would be a natural fit for such a venue. However, sometimes complementaries can meld rather than distinctively disturb and sharpen one’s senses with respect to the act of engagement because the Gardens are also filled with sculptures that generate a similar voice.

Eden Gallery is a unique, but captured space. So it is within these two different captured spaces – the Gardens and Eden Gallery – that provide real contrasting atmospheres. In each of these spaces, it is the plants that dominate the senses and so my environmental art in such a setting becomes a conscious expression and obsession of the fragility of three-dimensional life that is no longer truly unfettered. Will the last wilderness become a plot within a garden setting that is surrounded by suburbia? The philosophy of my “Environmental Art” strives to prick your consciousness in order not to allow this to happen! Education - via Art or Garden - is a very powerful transforming medium that can create an understanding of why sustainability is a necessary gift for life in general.

Marie-Therese with her diptych - Sequestration of CO₂ - at Eden Gallery.

It is therefore incumbent on me - before I show you my retrospective exhibition (which is next week's post) – I need to give you a feel for Eden Gardens.

The Place
Eden Gardens & Garden Centre is located only 20 minutes from Sydney’s CBD. It is situated on 2.5 hectares (over 6 acres) in North Ryde and is set against the trees of Lane Cove National park.

Eden Gardens in the foreground and a crane of North Sydney in the background.

Australian entrepreneur Simon Ainsworth is the founder and Managing Director of Eden Gardens. He opened the award winning flagship center at the end of 2004. It has since won numerous awards.

Simon Ainsworth.

It contains all elements of the Eden Gardens business model; that is, a commitment to provide contemporary living solutions, quality products, friendly service and through their efforts in horticulture and education, they are committed to making their community a better place. Currently the center employs over 80 staff.



Eden Gardens.

Designed by Architect Lionel Glenenning, the main building is a modern, architecturally striking design. Built with sustainability in mind, the center’s buildings allow as much natural light as possible and moreover, assists the airflow to circulate. It generates some solar power, which is used to heat water, thereby reducing its reliance on carbon emission electricity usage.

Front façade of the entrance into the Eden Garden complex.

The Display Gardens
The Display Gardens was designed by landscape Architect Jon Shinkfield. It features a man made reservoir containing rainwater collected and recycled from the gardens and used to flush toilets and water plants in the Garden Centre and Display Gardens. The North Ryde site previously contained a brick pit and the existing Display Gardens features a tower constructed from bricks made there.

The layout of Eden Gardens in North Ryde.

Daffodil Garden Dispay.

Looking down on hedges from the aerial walkway.

Garden vistas suddenly come into view.

Open structured tunnel often used as a bridal or groom entry into a open air wedding ceremony.

Outside room that looks onto a garden setting.

Water feature along a walk way.

A formal water feature/walkway.

The Facilities
Eden Garden also offers a number of facilities from conference meetings to outside tutorials on gardening to gift shops to a café (Dragonfly Café) to an art gallery.

Patrons of the Dragon Fly café – outside seating.

Patrons inside the Dragon Fly Café.

Hmmm – yum, yum!

Further outside eating facilities.

The Gift shop.

Another view of the shop.

Outside setting for garden tutorials.

The Greek amphitheatre.

Oh yes - they do sell plants!

The Art in the Garden
Sculpture features heavily in Eden Gardens. It is a natural fit since it structures the Gardens into boundaries of sorts. As you meander from one garden vista to another the sculptural forms anchor the artistic and garden spaces into distinct atmospheres. Not all of the sculptural forms will be listed here, rather a taster on what is offered will give you a glimpse of the artistic narrative.

Artist: Col Henry – Fiddle Sticks (2009).
Sculpture in the vineyards.
PVC pipe/steel supports.

Artist: Ayad Algaragholli – Heavenly Kiss (2011).
Sculpture by the sea.
Silicon bronze/high tensile steel.

Artist: John Turier – Pineapple-man (2004).
Concrete/terrazzo/bronze.

Nature.
Yellow tree and painted nest box.

Michael Garth – Busy Bee (2004).
Bronze/Steel.

Artist: Trevor Weekes – The Eden Tree (2004).
Bronze/stainless steel.

Next week my exhibition - When Rainforest Glowed @ Eden Gardens.