Russell Sheridan
Image source: Australian Country Magazine
Born in Beverley in 1956, Russell Sheridan grew up in Bunbury and now lives on the site of an old Dardanup farmhouse with his wife, Linda Skrolys. He is a graduate of Claremont School of Art.
A larger-than-life character, Russell memorably mythologises the Australian larrikin. Using local anti-heroes like Moondyne Joe, John Boyle O’Reilly and Lasseter, he whimsically explores society’s outsiders and law breakers in mediums as varied as bronzes, chain-saw shaping, ceramics and mixed media. His work is innovative and provocative and warmed with humanity and humour.
Russell established himself as an icon in the southwest during the 1990s, where his public art shaped the culture and the visual character of Bunbury and the region. His work is in numerous prominent collections including the Art Gallery of WA.
Visit: www.skrolys-sheridan.com
Jo Darbyshire
Jo Darbyshire was born in 1961 in Perth, Western Australia. She studied Fine Arts at Curtin University in 1981, a Post-Graduate Diploma at Canberra School of Art in 1991 and a Master of Creative Arts in Cultural Heritage at Curtin University of Technology in 2004.
Jo's abstract paintings reference the social and environmental history of place. She aligns her work to that of the Surrealists and their aim, through manipulation of the material texture and colour of oil paint, to suggest a poetic, sensory connection.
Her current work explores her strong relationship with the Western Australian coast and her interest in its underwater landscapes, islands, Fremantle Port and traces of colonial life.
She often incorporates contemporary social history into projects. In 2003 she won a museum award for her exhibition, The Gay Museum, for the Perth Festival at the WA Museum and in 2018 she created the installation, 'Warship – The Glorious Decline of the Officer’s Library' at John Curtin Gallery.
Jo has received State Government and Australia Council funding to attend international residency programs such as Cite Internationale des Artes, Paris; Banff Centre for the Arts, Canada and Cill Rialaig studios, Ballin Skelligs, Ireland. In 2005, Jo won the Bankwest Contemporary Art Award. She exhibits regularly and her artwork is held in all major public institutions in WA, private collections, nationally and internationally.
Her public art commissions include the Supreme Court Civil, Perth (an 18 metre long painting and glass wall artworks) and Fiona Stanley Hospital.
Visit: www.jodarbyshire.com
Anne Neil
Anne Neil was brought up in Queensland, but arrived in Western Australia in 1980 after some years of fun and adventure in London.
In 1985,She gained a BA with Distinction in Art and Design at Curtin University of Technology, with a double major in Jewellery and Ceramics. In 1992, she decided to scale –up her art practice and went to Canberra to do a Post Graduate Diploma in sculpture at the Australian National University.
Anne’s early training and arts practice in jewellery continues to inform her sculpture. Metals remain her passion and although the scale of her current work can only be accomplished through industrial fabrication, the counter-balance of subtle surface treatments illustrate her joy of handcrafted techniques.
A small commission for a cast concrete wall with Steve Tepper in 2001, led both artists to experiment with artwork that could be completely integrated into the built form. In 2005, Anne began an association with Main Roads Western Australia through which she has precision cast artworks into bridges on major highways in Perth and the south west of Western Australia.
Anne is represented in collections in Australia, Malaysia, South Korea, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
In 2012 she was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by ArtSource in Western Australia in recognition of the breadth and scale of her art practice and her generosity in mentoring other artists.
Joan Walsh-Smith
Charles Smith and Joan Walsh-Smith are a husband and wife sculpture team originally from Ireland, working internationally for over forty years, collaborating on large scale public artworks in Europe, South-East Asia and Australia, where they settled in 1984. They have been working in the field of public art since winning the prestigious Art in Context British Arts Council award in 1973. In 1978 they won the Irish National Fine Art Sculpture Award with their large bronze, ‘The Bird of the Golden Land’. They have produced many exhibitions, in Ireland and Continental Europe, centered around concepts of intrinsic importance to their development as artists.
Two solo exhibitions in Holland, sponsored by Heineken and Centraal Beheer, the Dutch National Insurance Corporation, were followed by their being selected to represent Ireland, with a major exhibition at 'Arteder’, the international contemporary sculpture Biennale in Bilbao, Spain. After this, they were invited to mount an exhibition at the Museum of Berga, near Barcelona for the Patum Festival. Charles & Joan then lived & worked between Ireland and Spain for a number of years, exhibiting and undertaking many commissions in Valencia & Marbella.
After a visit to Australia in 1983, they decided to base themselves and their three children in Perth, setting up their studios in the bush land hill- setting of Gidgegannup, surrounded by native wildlife and their own bird sanctuary where they care for injured and abandoned birds.
From there they operate all over Australia and into Asia having won an international competition to produce the entrance statement time-piece sculpture for the University of Science & Technology in Hong Kong in 1991 and the commemorative sculpture, ‘Heaven & Earth’ in Tai Po Park, celebrating the re-unification of Hong Kong & China plus many other large-scale works in Hong Kong including 8 No. major copper murals at City Plaza for the Swire group and the ‘Journey to the West’ relief mural at Fung Tak Park. Other significant projects include the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Recovery Memorial in Kobe, Japan.
The first major commission undertaken in Australia was the National Memorial to the Australian Army, Anzac Parade, Canberra, as winners of a National competition in 1988. Their most significant project of this kind in Western Australia, is the Memorial to HMAS Sydney, Geraldton. Other war memorials followed on and have become a major part of Charlie & Joan’s work, and a crucial commitment in their lives. The most significant of these is the HMAS Sydney Memorial, Geraldton W.A. which they completed for the 60th Anniversary of the sinking, in 2001. This memorial covers the top of Mount Scott and involves major symbolic elements that tell the narrative of this, the most terrible single tragedy in Australian military history. Following on from the finding of the wreck of the Sydney in 2008, they are engaged in the design of the final element to commemorate this somber occasion. ‘Closing the Circle’
Historical works are a major feature of their commission. In Perth, they created the Heritage Trail Sculpture Walk comprising eleven over-life size bronze sculptures and the Citizen of the Year Swan Fountain in Burswood Park, the Alexander Forrest sculpture and the bronze Kangaroos in St. George’s Terrace. Also in the CBD, the ‘Footsteps in Time’ sculpture series comprising five bronze figures in the forecourt of St. Martin’s Centre and the extensive complex of copper and steel artworks based on the history of Perth in the interior. For Kalamunda Shire, they have produced the Gum Nut Fountain series consisting of three major roundabout water feature bronze sculptures. The Heritage Circle in Victoria Park is also based on the history of the area, amongst many other civic features throughout the Metropolitan area.
In South Perth they were commissioned to do the May Gibbs memorial and the Mother & Joey Kangaroo group at Perth Zoo.
In 1999, they were commissioned to do the Memorial to the Pearl Diver, Broome, WA In Fremantle, the Memorial to the Migrant Children stands at the new Maritime Museum and the Statue to War time Prime Minister John Curtin commissioned by the State Government of WA. was unveiled at Fremantle Town Hall for the Anniversary of the end of WWII in November 2005
In recognition of their work Charles & Joan were each awarded the ‘ Centenary Medal ‘ 2001 for outstanding achievements in the field of ‘Large Scale Public Art’.
Linking back to their Irish heritage, Charlie & Joan produced the Catalpa Memorial, in commemoration of the Fenians, for the City of Rockingham in 2005. In that year they also produced the Freedom sculpture for the Pivot Group. Projects in 2006 were comprised of several commissions in the centre of Perth: the Septimus Roe Piazza Heritage Sculpture; the ‘street theatre’ bronze of Percy Buttons in Hay Street Mall; The Foundation Professor’s Commemorative Walk at the University of Western Australia comprising 12 No. bronze relief twice life-size portraits, was unveiled in September 2007.Other key projects undertaken in that year, was the Willem de Vlamingh Memorial time-piece at Barrack Square, Perth, as a result of winning a competition to commemorate the Mapping of Australia.
During this period, they began work on a major commission for the Perth Transport Authority: The Sapphire Atomic Clock Tower-inspired by the World’s most accurate atomic clock, built by a young team of physicists at the University of WA, led by Dr. Andre Luiten. This clock is accurate to 1/10 billionth of a second. The 15 meter high glass-symbolic sapphire crystal tower will be linked by land line to UWA and will incorporate 3 full colour screens, displaying the world’s most accurate time. It is hoped to be completed by July 2010.
Also during this period, they developed an exciting memorial to the construction of the Rabbit Proof Fence for the Cunderdin Historical Society which is planned to be initiated in Cunderdin in 2009/10 but will also involve different elements of this original artwork being installed at key points in the 32 Shires along the route of the Fence, covering approximately 3,000 Kilometers. Thus the longest fence in the world will be honoured by the longest memorial in the world.
In 2008 another in the Gum Nut Fountain series was completed for Kalamunda Shire at High Wycombe. There were also two city centre projects in Adelaide Terrace; steel entrance gates at Peak Apartments: and a 6 meter high relief mural, Swan earth Song. They also collaborated on a major entrance statement for Woodside Petroleum at Karratha. In an exciting innovative departure, Charlie & Joan designed and produced a major artwork based on the history of wine at Saracen Winery in Margaret River WA: The Temple of Wine. In this year they also completed a large steel war memorial for Onslow, WA.
Marwa Fahmy
Marwa Fahmy is a multidisciplinary artist with over 10 years of experience. Growing up in the suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, as an Australian-Egyptian, Marwa had a unique upbringing within a traditional family. Being immersed in two cultures gave her valuable insights and inspired her artistic journey.
Fahmy’s work is largely inspired by nature, culture, and narrative and by her observations of the world around her she has most recently been looking at belonging, what it means to her to different people and how to cultivate it.
Fahmy's use of colour is electric using predominantly analogous colours with a touch of contrast to create visual interest. Her aim when creating public art specifically murals is to create work that will engage a large variety of people, look aesthetically pleasing, enhance the sight it's created in and create a conversation. She aims to create work that inspires and helps people to feel seen.
Some of Fahmy's notable achievements include participating in Sculpture by the Sea Cottesloe as part of the artist collective k.m.s.e, where the group won a $15,000 sculpture scholarship and exhibited at Sculpture by the Sea Bondi. Additionally, she has completed an $94,000 public art commission in the Museum Street Precinct in Perth, WA, and has undertaken various murals and ceramic installations across Victoria.
Visit: www.marmarstudio.net
Claire Bailey
Claire Bailey dismantles and reconnects objects in imaginative ways, in a seemingly random process to achieve a built form. Every arrangement harks back to her preoccupation with time, evolution and music.
Over many years, Claire has kept the focus on the alchemy of assemblages of found objects, very often using whimsy and humour to create strange machines with mysterious purposes. Clocks, wheels, bones and musical instruments are her favoured components.
Bailey won the People’s Choice Award for the 2016 Bankwest Art Prize for Sculpture and is represented in numerous public and private collections. She holds a Diploma of (Sculpture) from Claremont School of Art and has exhibited widely.
Charles Owen Perry
1929-2011
Charles O. Perry, was a sculptor who created dozens of mathematically inspired works for plazas and sculpture gardens throughout the United States and abroad and created Continuum, the knotted black Möbius strip that stands in front of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
Perry was an architect working for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in San Francisco when he began making sculptural models at night in a garage. In 1964 his works were exhibited in a one-man show at the Hansen Gallery that sold out and earned him a commission from the city of Fresno. That year he also won the Prix de Rome, an award that sent him to study sculpture at the American Academy in Rome, where he stayed for the next 14 years to practice architecture and make large-scale works of sculpture that drew inspiration from the geometry inherent in natural forms.
Continuum, completed in 1976 for the new Air and Space Museum, is a bit of topological whimsy that plays with the peculiarities of the Möbius strip, which has one continuous surface and one edge. "In this case, the edge of the sculpture portrays the path of a star as it flows through the center of the sculpture's 'black hole' into negative space-time and on again into positive space," Mr. Perry told Ivars Peterson for the book Fragments of Infinity: A Kaleidoscope of Math and Art (2001).
Charles Owen Perry was born on Oct. 18, 1929, in Helena, Mont., where his father owned a successful gold and gem mine. He served in the Army as a forward observer with an artillery unit in Korea, where he was awarded a bronze star for bravery and invented his own gun sight out of scrap parts to achieve better depth perception. After returning to the United States, he enrolled in the School of Art and Architecture at Yale, earning a master's degree in architecture in 1958.
At the suggestion of the painter Josef Albers, he experimented with a variety of materials in a quest to discover their inner nature. In so doing, he became interested in the rhombus and invented plastic rhombic hexahedrons that interlocked to form novel shapes. These were later exhibited as art at the 1969 Spoleto Festival in Italy and, under the name Perrygons, sold as construction toys through the Museum of Modern Art.
The artistic possibilities of geometric forms, and the mysteries of the universe's physical laws, provided Mr. Perry with an inexhaustible source of material. The Möbius strip reappeared in the sculptures Calligraphic Möbius and Helix Möbius Mace, both in the Crystal City development in Arlington, Va.; Continuum II at the Marina Center Holdings Building in Singapore; and Solstice, at the Bank of America Building in Tampa, Fla., an assemblage of silver pipes described on its base as "a two-thirds twist triangular torus Möbius." Mr. Perry explored other shapes in Shell Mace"(Shell Oil Company, Melbourne), the bright-red, calligraphic Rondo (Kinshicho Station, Tokyo) and Eclipse"(Hyatt Regency, Embarcadero Center, San Francisco), a gold-colored sphere — technically a pentagonal dodecahedron with the faces spiraling outward — composed of 1,440 pieces of gold-colored, interlacing aluminum tubes.
Mr. Perry also designed gold and silver jewelry for Tiffany & Company, a semi-abstract chess set made of nickel-plated tubing, and sculptural puzzles. In the early 1990s he designed several chairs: an ergonomic stacking chair, known as the Perry Chair, for Krueger International; the Uno office chair for Steelcase; and the Virtuoso for Virco.
Stuart Green
Image source Frances Andrijich
With over thirty years experience creating public art for Perth and beyond, Stuart Green has created an enviable portfolio of artworks in a range of scales and themes. Stuart has created works that range from architectural façade treatments through to monumental stand-alone artworks as well as more small scale intimate interpretive pieces
He has a keen interest in the changing phenomena of the natural world around him and this is often a key driver for his more outwardly abstract works. Pattern, rhythm and sculptural mass often weave together in the artworks, with each having an underlying reference back to natural distributions, forms and energies.
His work can be seen in the Australian cities of Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra, and internationally in Abu Dhabi.
Visit: www.stuartgreen.com.au
Pietro Giacomo Porcelli
Born in Bisceglie Italy, in the province of Bari, he moved to Sydney with his fisherman father at the age of 8.
After initial training at the New South Wales Academy of Art, he furthered his study of sculpture and drawing in Naples, before returning to Fremantle with his father in 1898. Later that year, he completed his first commission – a bust of Sir John Forrest that now stands in the main entrance hall of Parliament House in Perth.
His 1902 statue of Alexander Forrest was the first such statue of a prominent public figure to be completed in Perth. He also created the imposing figure of Providence which stood atop the seven-storey AMP Chambers at the corner of St George's Tce and William St, which was completed in 1915, but was demolished in 1972 and moved to Floreat Lakes.
Porcelli also completed war memorials in Kalgoorlie, Boulder, Victoria Park, West Leederville and Moora, and numerous headstones in Karrakatta and Fremantle Cemeteries, including that of Sir John Forrest in 1918.
After a period of work in Melbourne in the 1920s, he returned to Perth in 1939, where he died in 1943. He is buried in Karrakatta Cemetery.
1872-1943
Born in Bisceglie Italy, in the province of Bari, he moved to Sydney with his fisherman father at the age of 8.
After initial training at the New South Wales Academy of Art, he furthered his study of sculpture and drawing in Naples, before returning to Fremantle with his father in 1898. Later that year, he completed his first commission – a bust of Sir John Forrest that now stands in the main entrance hall of Parliament House in Perth.
His 1902 statue of Alexander Forrest was the first such statue of a prominent public figure to be completed in Perth. He also created the imposing figure of Providence which stood atop the seven-storey AMP Chambers at the corner of St George's Tce and William St, which was completed in 1915, but was demolished in 1972 and moved to Floreat Lakes.
Porcelli also completed war memorials in Kalgoorlie, Boulder, Victoria Park, West Leederville and Moora, and numerous headstones in Karrakatta and Fremantle Cemeteries, including that of Sir John Forrest in 1918.
After a period of work in Melbourne in the 1920s, he returned to Perth in 1939, where he died in 1943. He is buried in Karrakatta Cemetery.
Andrew Kay
Andrew Kay
In 1962 Andrew won a scholarship to attend the Bolton College of Arts. Later he studied graphic design and worked in advertising in Manchester for three years. After travelling through India and Asia, Andrew returned to the UK to begin studying fine art at Preston Polytechnic, eventually going on to study fine art at Manchester Polytechnic, where he graduated with a Master of Arts degree in fine art.
After further travels throughout India and Asia he arrived in Australia with his wife Yvonne in 1979. Since arriving in Australia Andrew’s artwork has been centred on the creation of sculpture inspired by the natural environment. The abundance of forms, colour and wildlife that abound in the Australian landscape, provide him with an unending source of inspiration for his artwork.
Andrew has created public artwork for Government, councils and private organisations. He currently operates a bronze casting foundry at his studio in Roleystone, where he casts his own bronze sculptures. He has recently been exploring the possibility of incorporating fused glass that he has created in hist studio into his sculpture.
In 1962 Andrew won a scholarship to attend the Bolton College of Arts. Later he studied graphic design and worked in advertising in Manchester for three years. After travelling through India and Asia, Andrew returned to the UK to begin studying fine art at Preston Polytechnic, eventually going on to study fine art at Manchester Polytechnic, where he graduated with a Master of Arts degree in fine art.
After further travels throughout India and Asia he arrived in Australia with his wife Yvonne in 1979. Since arriving in Australia Andrew’s artwork has been centred on the creation of sculpture inspired by the natural environment. The abundance of forms, colour and wildlife that abound in the Australian landscape, provide him with an unending source of inspiration for his artwork.
Andrew has created public artwork for Government, councils and private organisations. He currently operates a bronze casting foundry at his studio in Roleystone, where he casts his own bronze sculptures. He has recently been exploring the possibility of incorporating fused glass that he has created in hist studio into his sculpture.
Visit: www.andrewkay.com.au
Monique Tippett
Monique Tippett is a full-time artist who lives and works in Dwellingup, a town in Western Australia. She trained as a designer-maker of fine furniture at the Australian School of Fine Wood from 2000 to 2002. Monique has been recognized with numerous awards for her art and has created many artworks that can be found in public and private collections in Western Australia and other countries. Her work focuses on the forests of southwest Western Australia and she primarily uses locally sourced timber and veneers.
In 2018, Monique established Lost Eden Creative, an Artist Run Initiative in her hometown of Dwellingup. Over the years, her dedication to the arts in WA has resulted in the support of over 250 artists and the curation of more than 25 exhibitions, up until 2023.
Monique was recognised in 2020 when she became the recipient of the Western Australian Regional Artist Fellowship Grant. This prestigious award allowed her to showcase her work through four large scale solo exhibitions over a two-year period.
The first exhibition, titled "My Darling," was held at Edith Cowen University in Western Australia. Second came "My Darling - Orisons" at the Holmes a Court Gallery in West Perth, followed by "My Darling - Forest 14" held at Lost Eden Creative in Dwellingup. To commemorate her body of work from 2009 to 2022, the Bunbury Regional Art Gallery with the support of the the Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) showcased a survey show of her work, which also featured cherished pieces by the late Howard Taylor, an esteemed artist and state treasure from the Art Gallery of Western Australia's State Collection "My Darling - Forest Souls".
Monique's influence extends beyond galleries and exhibitions through her numerous public art commissions in Western Australia. She has left her mark at various locations, including the Perth Children's Hospital with her Wintergreen Sculpture, Premier of WA - Hale House in Wandoo Country, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital's Mental Health wing, Merriden Hospital in the Wheatbelt region, St John of God Hospital in Midland, and the Margaret River Augusta Shire offices, to name a few.
In 2019 Monique was chosen as the Western Australian Parliament Artist in Residence, where her work “Golden State” made during the residency which hangs in its foyer.
In 2021, Monique played a prominent role as one of the leading artists in the inaugural international Indian Ocean Craft Triennial, "Curiosity and Rituals of the Everyday” exhibition held at the John Curtin University Gallery at UWA, Perth.
Monique's dedication to her craft is evident through her participation in numerous artist residencies, including an esteemed 5-week residency at the Banff Centre in Canada back in 2016. Most recently, in 2023, she was honored with a residency at Nocefresca in Italy-Sardinia, allowing her to explore new avenues of artistic expression for her upcoming group show in 2024.
Looking forward, Monique's artistic journey continues in 2024 as she prepares to embark on a four-week residency at The Edinburgh Sculpture Workshops in the United Kingdom. This exciting opportunity promises to be a crucial chapter in Monique's creative growth and exploration.
Visit: www.moniquetippettartist.com
Tony Jones
Tony Jones is a Western Australian artist whose career spans more than five decades and includes 20 solo exhibitions, over 100 group exhibitions and more than 60 public art commissions. His paintings, drawings and sculptures feature the key motifs of boat hulls and sail shapes, flags and human figures and represent humanity and its fates.
Jones is most widely known for his public artworks that represent aspects of local history, including Eliza which stands in the Swan River at the site of the Crawley Baths (now demolished) and of C. Y. O’Connor, in the water at Coogee Beach.
Jones has played a key role in educating a generation of Western Australian artists and in establishing and governing some of the State’s most significant independent arts initiatives and organisations, including Praxis Inc., Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, the “Basel Residency” and Sculpture at Bathers.
Read more: www.streetsofeastfreo.com/tony-jones
Sioux Tempestt
Sioux Tempestt is a multidisciplinary Perth artist with a background in design and marketing. In addition to studio-based works, Sioux’s practice employs a multi-disciplinary approach, generating mural, sculptural and digital art which meaningfully contributes to its context.
Sioux has been involved in numerous group shows and held seven solo exhibitions. Among other achievementsSioux was a Finalist in the 2019 Perth Royal Art Prize; 2019 City of Busselton Art Award; Highly Commended in the 2018 City of South Perth Emerging Artist Award; Highly Commended in the 2018 Town of Bassendean Visual Art Award and a Finalist in the City of Joondalup 2018 Community Invitation Art Award. Her work is held in the City of South Perth and Ronald McDonald House public collections.
Sioux aims to constantly push the boundaries of her practice by traversing across different mediums. She intuitively fuses colour and form to investigate the integration of abstract expressionism within different realms: the public art environment; architectural landscape; digital applications. Sioux seeks to conceptually express dynamism and movement through painterly interpretations. The marks of paint and other medium recording the kinetic energy of paint as it is transferred from her body to surface.
Sioux often uses photography for research, to document environments and ideas, then deconstruct/reconstruct the imagery or enlarge it to microscopically investigate and illustrate objects in greater depth.
Visit: www.siouxtempestt.com
Bradley Kickett
Bradley Kickett is a local Noongar artist. He was born in Northam and grew up in Perth. He is descended from the Kickett clan in York, Western Australia. He began painting in 2007.
Bradley’s style of art is abstract with paintings depicted from an aerial view and illustrated in a fluid style that he has developed over the last three years. Bradley’s art pieces are influenced by experiencing Noongar country, from the oceans to the rivers and seeing the wildflowers and the land from the air and showing the flow and the shapes of the earth. These images are all interwoven with the history and the stories that are shared and passed down to him from his family and elders.
Since 2007, Bradley has exhibited and sold work at True Blue Gallery, Maaliup Aboriginal Art Gallery, Kings Park Aboriginal Art Gallery, Yonga Boodjah Aboriginal Art Gallery and the Walliup Cultural Centre in Fremantle.
Further to this, Bradley has also exhibited and sold work at the Animal Art Awards, 2010, Manjar Art Awards (2010-2016), City of Gosnells Art Awards (2011, 2015 & 2016), City of Belmont Art Awards (2015 & 2016) and the City of South Perth, Emerging Artist Award (2015).
Bradley was the winner of the Acrylic Award at the City of Gosnells, 2015 and received the Highly Commended Award at the City of Belmont, 2016.
Bradley is currently studying in his second year at Curtin University, towards a Bachelor of Arts majoring in fine art.
Bradley Kickett
