Gemma Smith

Gemma Smith (born 1978) is an Australian painter and sculptor, who is Sydney-based.[1] Smith has been the recipient of numerous grants and been invited to join multiple exhibitions. She is known for her continuous experimentations with colour and abstraction.[2] Her work is held in museum, corporate and private collections across Australia.

Early life and education

Gemma was born in Sydney and was based there until 2004. In 2004 she went to Brisbane where she stayed until 2012. In 2012 she went to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States for 2 years. She lives and works in Sydney.[3]

Smith completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts at Sydney College of the Arts in 1999 and in 2004 an honour's year at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane.[2]

Work

Smith is a painter and a sculptor who works are abstract art. While the major modern movements of abstract art faded, Gemma sees abstract art as very alive, and pursues both geometric and organic forms of abstraction.[1]

In her early work she painted crystal-like forms to explore shapes, position and brilliant colour. Gemma then went on to explore these shapes in three-dimensional sculpture. As her work evolved, her paintings began to move from shapes to bands of colour interwoven with free brush strokes, using colour and interweaving to create spatial incongruities.[1]

Her early sculptures were made of airplane plywood and had hinges, so people could participate and fold the works and become engaged beyond just looking and looking away.[4]

The simple planes of some of her more recent sculptures, folded metal in a single colour, recall the late works of Alexander Calder, as well as works by Anthony Caro and Ellsworth Kelly.[1] She struggles with her paintings, and keeps only about 1 in 10, so she often paints over paintings. In her most recent paintings (2017+) she has used softer colours, often spreading them in layers to hide brushstrokes. She continually experiments.[4]

Smith has also executed commissioned public artworks including Ceiling Artwork at the Supreme Court and District Court, Brisbane (2011–2012) and Synchro, Adaptable (Red Oxide/Peach) at Brisbane Airport (2010).[1] In 2018 Gemma completed Triple Tangle, a mural of loops of colour commissioned by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, for their foyer wall going up the entry stairs. Her approach of continual experimentation is shown in her statement about Triple Tangle:[5]

"I essentially made the painting three times. Initially, I painted my lines ten centimeters thick and it didn’t work in the space – they were too spindly – and then I remade the entire work at twelve centimeters – they weren’t weighty enough – and then I did it again at thirteen centimeters, and it was just right."[4]

Collections

Her work is held in[5]

  • The Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC), Brisbane;
  • and UBS (Private Banking), Sydney.

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Smith has had solo exhibitions of her work at:

  • 2010 -- The Turner Gallery, Perth (2010)
  • 2010 and 2015 --The Milani Gallery, Brisbane (2010, 2015),
  • 2013 The Sarah Cottier Gallery, Sydney (2013), and
  • The Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces, in Melbourne[1]

Group exhibitions

Selected group exhibitions include[1]

  • Quartnerary, Queensland University of Technology Art Museum, Brisbane (2015);
  • Pittsburgh Biennial, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Pittsburgh (2014);
  • AfterPrima PostVera, Australia Council for the Arts, Sydney (2013);
  • Lightness & Gravity: Contemporary Works from the Collection, Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane (2012);
  • Case Study – Gemma Smith Considers the Work of Margo Lewers, Penrith Regional Gallery & The Lewers Bequest, Penrith, Sydney (2011);
  • Cubism & Australian Art, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne (2009);
  • Gemma Smith – Entanglement Factor, Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces, Melbourne (2009);
  • Primavera, MCA, Sydney (2008);
  • Contemporary Australia: OPTIMISM, Queensland Art Gallery | Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane (2008)

References
  1. "Gemma Smith". MCA. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  2. "Gemma Smith | Artist Profile, Exhibitions & Artworks". ocula.com. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  3. "About". Gemma Smith. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  4. "Gemma Smith". Artist Profile. 5 March 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  5. "About". Gemma Smith. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
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