Friday, August 30, 2013

2013 Geelong acquisitive print awards

Aqua Vitae - Water of Life
Dimensions: (W) 570mm x (H) 600mm / Print Medium: Intaglio

Aqua Vitae - Water of Life shortlisted for 2013 Geelong acquisitive print awards held at the Geelong Gallery, Little Malop Street Geelong VIC 3220
The exhibition opens August 31 and continues until November 24, 2013.

Friday, August 23, 2013

Impact 8 - International Printmaking Conference; Dundee, Scotland



I’m heading-off this weekend to Dundee, Scotland to attend the IMPACT 8 International Printmaking Conference and to show a sample of works from my Ricordi - Souvenirs project. 

I’ll keep you updated while I’m away with regular updates via my Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Print Festival Scotland: 23rd August – 1st September 2013

Impact 8 International Printmaking Conference
A celebration of interdisciplinary and exploration through the medium of print.
The eighth Impact international conference will be hosted in Dundee as a central element to the inaugural Print Festival Scotland – an event which aims to confirm the cultural diversity, historical significance and future potential of print.
Foregrounding the inherent experimental and interdisciplinary nature of print practices Impact 8 will provide a critical and interactive platform for the varied interests that make print such a unique discipline.  From its hybrid roots in industry and scholarship, through traditional design applications and fine art practices to its consistent significance within emerging technologies and theoretical debate – print continues to play a crucial role in the exploration of borders and crossings – be they geographical, ideological, cultural, theoretical or practical.
With the theme of ‘exploration’ and the multiple identity of the print, in mind, we would like to welcome you to Dundee to explore the cross-disciplinary nature of print media. Impact 8 will build upon the meeting’s reputation as a truly international event whilst reflecting the cultural identity of Scotland and Dundee’s reputation and heritage as the ‘City of Discovery’ – from polar exploration to biomedical research and its traditions of print, printmaking and publishing.


Biography

Antonietta Covino-Beehre was born in Avelino, Italy and migrated to Australia at a young age.
Her imagery is inspired by Italian history and folklore, and its juxtaposition within her multi-cultural family life in Melbourne. Her works incorporate multiple disciplines including: printmaking, sculpture, drawing and photography.
Covino-Beehre obtained her Master of Arts in 2002. Additionally, attended Tamarind
Institute, at the University of New Mexico in 2008.
Covino-Beehre recently exhibited work at Prints Tokyo 2012 at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and is currently participating in the Artist in residence at the University of Ballarat.
Her work is represented in national, state and regional art galleries, and in corporate and private collections in Australia and Europe.

Open Folio

Ricordi – Souvenirs
Ricordi – Souvenirs introduces a series of works centering on the symbolism of the
souvenir. Guided by a iconography collected through archives and collections, I embarked upon creating a new body of work from the compilations of these ricordi-souvenirs that I had amassed. Souvenirs allow us to remember a time on many sensory levels. Triggering sensations of nostalgia, they also give sanction to visually explore and experience other sensations and emotions – new ideas and suppositions are expressed. In a broader sense this project heralds more complexities and revelations of, and about humanity, cultural identities and the world at large becoming seamlessly borderless. Ricordi is the Italian word which translates into the word memory, I remember, the French translation reveals its ‘a coming back to oneself’ and perhaps as artists this is what we continually do.



Saturday, August 17, 2013

Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here - University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA, USA


Respice, Adspice, Prospice 
Examine the past, Examine the present, Examine the future
Dimensions: 193mm wide x 213mm high x 10mm deep 
Material: Bound in linen and imitation leather, printed with archival inks on maniro diachi paper

Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here
August 19 - October 31, 2013
Collins Memorial Library Exhibit 
University of Puget Sound 
1500 N. Warner, Tacoma, WA 98416 USA

Respice, Adspice, Prospice - Artist Statement

Respice, Adspice, Prospice: Examine the past, Examine the present, Examine the future - Combines text and images. Explores the ideology of rejuvenation and growth from adversity. 

The book serves as a universal statement that community will prevail and its knowledge will leave its mark, and be passed-on. Additionally, the passage of time strengthens the resolve of community and its ability to educate and engage with the past, present and future. 

A pertinent thought with regard to the reinvigoration and resolve of the al-Mutanabbi Street community.



Note: I have the fourth and final book of the edition available for purchase. Please contact me for further information and pricing. 
Additional images of the book are available on my website: http://www.acovinobeehre.com/Works/photos/

acb

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Ricordi - Souvenirs



RICORDI – SOUVENIRS 
Essay by Dr. Marie-Louise Anderson


Antonietta Covino-Beehre loves the silky voice and soulful songs of Edith Piaf, in particular Je ne regrette rien - I have no regrets. Piaf sings about the problems in life plus the precious things surrounding her. It was Piaf that first stimulated the artist to explore the meaning behind collecting souvenirs.

Usually when we think of souvenirs we imagine mass produced objects to support the tourist industry, for example, postcards, hats, mugs, badges, buttons, soft toys etc. They are marketed as mementos and associated with a specific location. In other words souvenirs have a nostalgic value.

At home too, without the need to travel, we are drawn to objects that relate to memories. The store at the end of blockbuster exhibitions, for example, can lure us to purchase merchandise associated with what we have just seen. Collectively we share the experience of seeing exotic objects and works of art from other places and timeframes. Souvenirs help us to re-visit and enjoy all over again the visual and tactile wisdom inherent in these events.  

A souvenir serves as a reminder of where we have been and proves to others the places we have visited. They assist in the sharing of experiences and expose our particular preferences. These objects can encourage us to make a return visit and their extent results in collections that proudly adorn our homes, often housed on shelves, mantle pieces and in glass cabinets. But souvenirs can also include the collection of family items or memorabilia associated with historical events, for example the visit to Australia by Queen Elizabeth II or the Eureka Stockade. Many scour opportunity shops for items of interest.

Some artists delve into the psychology of collecting souvenirs and exploit the visual possibilities. Lucie Fontaine produced a work from a series titled ‘Souvenir’, where text covers an arrangement of old photographs -  ‘ART IS DEFINED ONLY WITHIN THE STORY CALLED ART HISTORY ARTIFACTS SHOWN AT THIS EXHIBITION ARE NOT WORKS OF ART. THEY ARE RATHER SOUVENIRS, SELECTED SPECIMENS OF OUR COLLECTIVE MEMORY.”

One of Antonietta Covino-Beehre’s favourite artists, the German artist Dieter Roth, who was born in 1930 and died in 1998, scrutinized and appropriated from the world around him playing with visual poetry as a way of understanding how he could make sense of the world and his own place in it. Roth experimented with materials and their inherent meaning. For example he sculpted 250 generic rabbits out of rabbit dung, titled Rabbit-shit-rabbit, referring to the rabbit’s numbers through bodily workings.   

Roth’s friends and colleagues became part of the artist’s creative process by cooperating with him on certain projects. For example he presented them with gifts calling them souvenirs. The objects were then presented back to the artist for inclusion in an exhibition.

In 2002 Covino-Beehre produced postcards from images taken from her own contact sheets. She sent them to friends who subsequently sent them back postmarked. The postcards were then collated in a book that became part of an installation.

Souvenirs, for Covino-Beehre, mean more than tourist kitsch. For her project, Ricordi – Souvenirs, the artist delves into history, culture and identity. She tests her ideas by inviting friends and fellow artists to share their own ‘souvenirs’ for scrutiny. The artist filmed and interviewed each participant enquiring as to the meaning and context of their precious objects, their memories of the past. Interviewees trusted the artist with their stories after which she re-configured their anecdotes using the mediums of print and sculpture. Her investigation begins with the question, ‘do souvenirs tell us something about the purchaser, mark a particular time and place and/or refer to popular culture?’  

Ultimately Covino-Beehre facilitates all participants, including herself, to connect to each other through common experience and the need to belong.

Dr. Marie-Louise Anderson

Marie-Louise’s research interests have covered areas of migration, and particularly how different locations mold the individual and conversely how societies impact on place/landscape. Oral history has informed much of her artwork. As well as having several papers and articles published in magazines and conference journals, she has exhibited widely and her art practice covers a variety of media such as ceramics, photography, printmaking and installation.

Monday, August 5, 2013

The Souvenir Project



The Ricordi Souvenir project is an idea I’ve had for several years. My house is a treasure-trove of found, gifted and purchased memories. 
“Uno ricordo” was my mums catch phrase, meaning ‘a memory - I remember’.

As the current artist in residence at the University of Ballarat, in central Victoria, Australia - I’m creating a body of work that explores the ‘Souvenir’.

The Ricordi Souvenir project when concluded will include photo-intaglio and lithographic prints, video and sculptural installations.