3 – 20 May 2018
about the exhibition
Denese Oates is a Sydney based sculptor who has experimented with a broad range of media throughout her career with her current practice focusing primarily on the potential of copper and steel. Her sculptures range in scale from delicate wall sculptures, “flattened like pressed flowers that evoke whimsical trees and vines”, to robust pieces of corten steel, richly rusted to give the appearance that they are part of the landscape in which they sit. In her ‘topiary’ pieces, the copper has been trained like delicate vines, a juxtaposition to the boulder forms they create. Denese’s choice of metal as her preferred medium creates a contrast between the durability of the pieces and the transient and fragile subject matter that she depicts; “These complex narratives resonate with contemporary concerns over the dynamic between order and chaos, offering my unique perspective on the ambiguities, subtleties and dichotomies inherent in visual language.” Each piece is beautifully and meticulously constructed, with her forms a playful comment on how “seemingly binary qualities can coexist in time and space.”
Born in Orange in the central west of NSW, Denese moved to Sydney to study at the Alexander Mackie College of Advanced Education in Sydney (now College of Fine Art, UNSW. She has exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions nationwide and her work is represented in many collections including Parliament House, Artbank, University of New South Wales, Christchurch City Collection (NZ) and many Australian regional galleries.
