23 May – 8 June 2024
about the exhibition
Nicole Ayliffe explores the optical qualities of glass through her beautiful transparent glass forms. By using a variety of cold working techniques, Nicole masterfully creates unique visual effects in her blown forms to render the illusion of space. Engraved black and white photographic imagery of the South Australian countryside where Nicole lives depicts forest, sky and ocean. These sit in harmony with intricate engraved details of leaves and flowers brought to life through glass. Nicole says of her work, “I have used design elements found in our natural environment to influence both the form and imagery used in this body of work. Capturing the beauty of nature through glass is the inspiration for my pieces.” The soft curves of her forms are shaped in response to the imagery encased in the glass. A central bubble suspended within the thick clear walls of each piece creates a window where light reflects and refracts shapes in the imagery. The intersection of solidity and weightlessness, from exterior to interior, allows distortion and movement to occur, creating an individual experience of the work as the viewer moves around it. The works are completed by a meticulous process of cutting and polishing. This dynamic relationship between the eye and the object draws our attention to our own notions of perception and memory.
Nicole graduated in 2005 from the South Australian School of Art, University of South Australia, completing a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours) majoring in glass and photography. She has been selected for inclusion in many art awards and has been a finalist in the Ranamok Glass Prize, Vicki Torr International Year of Glass Prize, the Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize and Young Glass International, Ebeltoft, Denmark. Nicole has exhibited in London, Stockholm, Taiwan, Edinburgh and Pittsburg. Her work is represented in numerous collections in Australia and overseas, including Parliament House (Canberra), National Art Glass Collection (Wagga Wagga), The Toledo Museum of Art, USA and the Glasmuseum (Coesfeld, Germany).
