For many of us, wallpaper occupies a bizarre double life in our own personal worlds.
In one instance it haunts us with memories of our childhood bedrooms, emblazoned with repeated motifs of cars or horses… or horses in cars.
In another, it’s the super cool embellishment which flocks the walls of uber chic venues, adding that much needed touch of class. Hell, even fashion’s godmother Vivienne Westwood has designed wallpaper to make your home super styling beyond belief.
Wallpaper is the focus of a new exhibition hitting Central Gallery this July as part of the City of Perth Winter Arts Season.
The premise of the exhibition is simple: 25 local artists are provided with a 4m swatch of textured or patterned wallpaper which they then transform as they see fit.
One such participating artist is Jo Darbyshire.
‘It was really an opportunity to do something different to my normal practice,’ Darbyshire said of the collaborative nature of the show.
‘We were given the wallpaper and asked to respond to it. I loved having a long roll to play with and I liked the velvety nature of the piece that I received.’
Darbyshire said that her resulting artwork was ‘vaguely similar’ to her current creative works, but just that she had a far more relaxed time making the piece.
For Eva Fernandez, the exhibition is an opportunity to explore the notion that the writing truly is on the wall, an idiom from the book of Daniel which foretells the demise of the Babylonian Empire.
‘In my own hand writing, I have scribed a continuous line of text from the book of Daniel which includes this phrase,’ Fernandez explained.
‘I have chosen to use a Spanish text which is my mother tongue to emphasis my own inability to reconcile notions of mortality through loss of culture and language.
‘This continuous text which loops back and forth along the 4m length of the wallpaper scroll also emphasises passing of time in the process of undertaking this task. The design of the wall paper also curiously resembles the symbol for infinity.’
Both artists stressed how essential group exhibitions like these were to their own individual directions.
‘I think group exhibitions like this are important because they encourage spontaneity and creativity rather than having to be political or make marketable work,’ said Darbyshire.
‘The fun part will be seeing what other artists did with the same brief.’
‘Group exhibitions such as this one are important to an arts practice as they give artists the opportunity to work in a medium which they may not otherwise have attempted,’ added Fernandez.
‘This challenge can often inspire different areas in your own discipline and give rise to new ideas and outcomes. It is also an opportunity to exhibit and interact with other artists and create connections.’
Darbyshire and Fernandez will be joined by the likes of zine superstar Anna Dunnill, street artist Trevor6025 with Emma McPike, plus Sue Codee, Gregory Pryor, Little Design Horse, Clare McFarlane, Alex Spremberg, Annabel Dixon, Marzena Topka and many more.
Wallpaper will be appearing at Gallery Central in Northbridge from July 12 until July 31.
Scott-Patrick Mitchell
