SELECTED FOR SUMMER SOLSTICE EDITION - OBSCYRA MAGAZINE - BASEL SWITZERLAND LAUNCHING SOON - 2026

I’m delighted to share that I have been selected for inclusion in the Summer Solstice edition of Obscyra Magazine, an artist-first contemporary art magazine founded in Basel, Switzerland 🇨🇭✨✨✨

Chosen through an international open call, my work appears in this issue alongside invited artists from around the world in response to the theme “Brise + Surrealm”…a poetic fusion of architecture and fever dream, where the boundaries between the built and imagined worlds begin to dissolve.

I’m especially grateful to the Obscyra team for embracing my work so wholeheartedly. I was humbled and genuinely surprised to learn that this upcoming Summer Solstice edition will feature an entire double-page spread dedicated to my artwork.

Founded by Arlo Jake Lagmay and Emy Vicencio, Obscyra champions raw, unfiltered and powerful artistic voices across surrealism, expressionism, abstraction and lowbrow art. Launching on the summer and winter solstices, the magazine is accompanied by exhibitions in unique and unexpected spaces.

This Summer Solstice edition launches on 21 June in Basel, coinciding with the final day of Art Basel, with the exhibition taking place in the Gundeli district.

My sincere thanks to founder and owner Arlo Jake Lagmay, curatorial partner Emy Vicencio, and the entire Obscyra team for their generosity, support and belief in the work. I never expected this much love and encouragement, and I am incredibly appreciative of the opportunity.

I’m so grateful to be included in this international publication and to be part of a conversation that celebrates artists working beyond conventional boundaries.

Pre-Order your copy online here!

The magazine features:
108 pages of stories, features and articles.
5 Artist Feature
5 Art Stories
25 selected artists from all over the world.

#ObscyraMagazine #Basel #ArtBasel #ContemporaryArt #Surrealism

Front cover of this Summer Solstice edition of Obscyra Magazine launches on 21 June in Basel coinciding with the final day of Art Basel, with the exhibition taking place in the Gundeli district.

NEW REPRESENTATION & MENTORSHIP WITH SONIA BORRELL (AKA SONIA BB LONDON) - 'STUDIO TO GALLERY' CURATED PLATFORM LONDON

I’m pleased to share that I’ve been invited into representation and mentorship with Sonia Borrell (aka Sonia BB London) at ‘Studio to Gallery’ London 🇬🇧

Sonia Borrell is an art collector, curator, advisor, lawyer, writer, philanthropist, and entrepreneur.

​Since founding the Tryson Collection in 2008, Sonia has dedicated her life to discovering talent, nurturing creativity, and curating excellence from Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Germany, the UK, the US, Spain, and beyond. Her collection has been featured in some of the world’s biggest museums including the Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art, the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum in Madrid, and the Museo Novecento in Florence.

​She owns works from the top figurative and contemporary artists, including Alex Katz, Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, Jaume Plensa, and Robert Nava. With her Soniabblondon brand, she’s set to uplift the next generation of artists and collectors to advance the scene forward.

​As an art advisor for Art Belina in China and The Althari Group in Saudi Arabia, her commitment to cultivating the Kingdom’s art scene has captured acclaim in GQ, Harper’s Bazaar, Women’s Herald, L’Officiel, and others.

​Her personal journey reflects her mission: Art lovers follow movements. Art collectors move them further.

I feel honoured to be be discovered by Sonia and having her reach out to me for this unique curated mentor-led platform. Her thoughtful guidance and strategic insight come at a meaningful stage in my practice, as I continue to explore my work between Australia and abroad.

Looking forward to this next chapter alongside her and her carefully curated community of artists that are a supportive ecosystem.

Heartfelt thanks to Sonia. You are such a powerful advocate for artists building sustainable, international careers.

The QR code is my business card to view my Studio to Gallery artist profile. You can also view my profile on the Studio to Gallery website.

#studiotogallery #soniabblondon #soniaborrell #artistcommunity #contemporaryartist

NEW GALLERY REPRESENTATION - BRENDA COLAHAN FINE ART (BCFA) SYDNEY

I’m delighted to announce my new gallery representation with Brenda Colahan Fine Art (BCFA), Sydney.

In their announcement, BCFA shared:

“BCFA is thrilled to announce the representation of Louisa Chircop. An esteemed, multidisciplinary Australian Maltese artist specialising in painting, Chircop is internationally recognised as a significant artist working with surrealist motifs and personal story. Delving into the female psyche, memories and lived experiences, she transcends through material experimentation and emotional resonation.

Awarded Artist-in-Residence in 2025 at MUŻA (Malta National Museum of Art), Valletta, Chircop also held a solo exhibition at MUŻA in the same year. In 2026 she has been shortlisted for the prestigious Sidney Nolan Art Prize hosted by the Sidney Nolan Trust, The Rodd, Herefordshire, UK, and is a finalist in the 2026 Adelaide Perry Prize for Drawing. These latest honours add to an impressive list of recognition as a multiple award winner and finalist, and inclusion within distinguished public programs and exhibitions globally.”

Louisa is represented internationally by MarieGallery5 and Arts Advisory, Malta, alongside Brenda Colahan Fine Art, Sydney.

I look forward to moving into 2026 with Brenda and the BCFA Team.

Photography by Simone Silverman @margotmagazine

SHORTLISTED - SIDNEY NOLAN ART PRIZE - SIDNEY NOLAN TRUST THE RODD UK - 2026

I’m thrilled to share that I have been shortlisted for the prestigious Sidney Nolan Art Prize at the Sidney Nolan Trust (UK).

I’m honoured to be included among a strong international cohort of artists, with my work Tongue against the Cactus selected by an esteemed panel of international judges and travelling to the UK ahead of the prize winner announcements in July/August 2026. To be connected with Sidney Nolan’s legacy in this way feels like a meaningful full-circle moment.

Inspired by the legacy of pioneering Australian modernist Sir Sidney Nolan (1917–1992), the Sidney Nolan Art Prize invites artists to explore emotion and human identity in relation to society, landscape, and the natural world. The prize recognises Nolan’s restless curiosity and commitment to art as a way of addressing urgent and contemporary questions of human experience.The judging panel brings together curatorial, critical, and design expertise spanning major institutions and practices. The panel includes Antony Mottershead, Curator and Creative Producer at the Sidney Nolan Trust; Jennifer Guerrini Maraldi, Founder and Director of JGM Gallery, London, and a leading UK specialist in Indigenous Australian contemporary art; Melanie Pocock, Artistic Director (Exhibitions) at Ikon Gallery, UK, with an internationally focused curatorial practice; and Tom Piper MBE, an award-winning designer with over three decades of experience across theatre, large-scale installation, and museum exhibition design.

My shortlisted work will join forty finalists from an international callout and will culminate in an exhibition at The Rodd, Sidney Nolan’s former 17th-century home in rural Herefordshire, in Summer 2026, with prizes including a £1000 award with a solo exhibition, artist residencies, and mentoring opportunities.

Stay Tuned!!

FINALIST - ADELAIDE PERRY DRAWING PRIZE PLC SYDNEY - 2026

So honoured to be selected as one of forty finalists in the Adelaide Perry Prize 2026. Thank you to Scott Elliott, Assistant Curator of Australian Art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales for the selection and thoughtful consideration of my work. Grateful to be included among such a strong group of artists and representing contemporary drawing through this important Australian art prize

TO APPROACH THE UNKNOWABLE - A CURATED GROUP EXHIBITION - GRACE COSSINGTON SMITH GALLERY - IN COLLABORATION WITH THE HASSALL COLLECTION - 2025

I’m thrilled to share that I’ll be exhibiting in a curated group exhibition at the Grace Cossington Smith Gallery called ‘To Approach the Unknowable’ opening Sat 1 Nov 2-4pm .

This exhibition brings together four Australian contemporary artists whose works, guided by a surrealist inclination, engage in a fascinating dialogue with personal ideas and with works selected by the artists themselves from the Hassall Collection. The juxtaposition creates a rich exploration of the surrealist inspiration within the Australian context.

The exhibition features works by James Gleeson, Peter Booth, Sidney Nolan, Joy Hester and Louise Hearman - artists whose imaginative force continues to resonate deeply within Australian art.

My works form an installation in response to personally selected pieces from the Geoffrey Hassall Collection by Sidney Nolan, James Gleeson, and Louise Hearman. Among them are Gleeson’s final, unfinished drawing and a Nolan painting composed into my own work, alongside other selected pieces from the collection that converse with recent ceramics and newly created drawings, paintings, and mixed media works.

These works inspired a poem exploring thirst as a metaphor for life cycles, creativity, and water as a vital force. The installation embodies the poem’s rhythm and subterranean thought, unfolding as a theatrical and spiritual dialogue between image and word — tracing how inspiration flows between absence and renewal, presence and transformation.

The exhibition title is taken from a 1976 poem by Australian artist James Gleeson in which he states:

The aim of Art
is to approach the unknowable;
and the only approach
is by way of the known, to use it
as a springboard.

🗓️ Please join us on Saturday 1 November, 2–4pm
for the opening of the exhibition.

✨ To be officially opened by Simon Weir
Artist and Academic Sydney School of Architecture, Design & Planning, The University of Sydney

The artists will be present.

RSVP appreciated

📍 Grace Cossington Smith Gallery
✨ Works generously lent from the Hassall Collection

Image credit: Louisa Chircop ‘Tongue against the Cactus’, mixed media and photomontage on watercolour paper, 76cm x 56cm (paper dimensions).

DOUBLE PAGE REVIEW OF 'GROTTO GIRL' BY DR LOUIS LAGANÀ - THE MALTA INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY - 15 JUNE 2025

Another Double-Page Spread -This time a Review in The Malta Independent on Sunday!

I’m feeling incredibly grateful and a little overwhelmed to share that Grotto Girl at MUŻA Malta’s National Community Museum of Art has been featured in another double-page spread. This time in The Malta Independent on Sunday.

The response to the exhibition has truly touched me. I’ve had people reach out - some with visible emotion - to say how deeply the work resonated with them and how much they’ve loved the exhibition. Knowing that Grotto Girl has stirred something personal in others is the most meaningful recognition I could hope for.

A heartfelt thank you to the wonderful Professor Louis Laganà for his thoughtful, generous and amazing review. Your words captured the spirit of the exhibition so beautifully. And thank you to the lovely Henry Zammit Cordina for the stunning photography.

DOUBLE PAGE PREVIEW OF 'GROTTO GIRL' BY DR LOUIS LAGANÀ - SUNDAY TIMES OF MALTA - 1 JUNE 2025

Double wow! ✨ A double-page preview of my artist residency, community outreach project, and upcoming exhibition ‘Grotto Girl’ has just been featured in the Sunday Times of Malta - beautifully written by the insightful Dr Louis Laganà (Lough) who seems to have adopted an incredible appreciation of my work 🙏

I had no idea it had come out - and just ahead of my exhibition opening at MUŻA Valletta #Heritagemalta I’m ever so grateful for this incredible, thoughtful, and thought-provoking reflection on my work and practice ❤️🇲🇹❤️

Please join me for the opening on June 11 at 6:30pm at MUŻA, with the inauguration to be opened by:

🇲🇹Mr Owen Bonnici – Minister for Culture, Lands, and Local Government @bonnicio

🇲🇹🇦🇺His Excellency Mr Matt Skelly – High Commissioner of Australia in Malta

🇲🇹 Dr Louis Laganà – Art historian, critic, and curator.

Feeling honoured, excited, and deeply thankful. 💙

Heartfelt gratitude to my dear friend for his impeccable art documentation and 📸 Henry Zammit Cordina @henryzammitcordina

And a warm thank you to 🙏❤️🇲🇹 The Sunday Times of Malta and Arts and Culture editor Lara Zammit
Thank you again Dr Louis Laganà for delivering an amazing insight into my work and creativity, I’m completely humbled by your passion about it and feeling very grateful.

Dr Laganà is a highly respected art historian, critic, curator, and practicing artist. He earned his PhD in Art History (Modern and Contemporary Art) from Loughborough University in the UK, and currently serves as Associate Professor at the University of Malta @ummalta within the Faculty for Social Wellbeing. His research and teaching span Modern and Contemporary Art History, Visual Culture, Psychoanalysis and Art, The Arts and Wellbeing, and more.

Dr Laganà is also a prolific writer. His literary contributions include the three-volume series “Two Generations of Maltese Artistic Families” (2014–2016) and the co-authored book “Psychology and the Arts: Perceptions and Perspectives” with Professor Carmel Cefai. He has contributed extensively to academic journals, exhibition catalogues, and newspapers, helping to shape discourse around art and culture in Malta and beyond.

#ArtistResidency #CommunityArt #TimesOfMalta #MUZA #HeritageMalta #ContemporaryArt #ArtExhibition #contemporaryartist #preview #broadsheet #MaltaExhibition #louisachircop #GrottoGirl #internationalart #artcollector #womeninthearts #artsandculture @mariegallery5 #mariegallery5andartadvisory

1 June 2025 The Sunday Times of Malta

WINNER - 'HIGHLY COMMENDED' PADDINGTON ART PRIZE - 2024

Super chuffed to win Highly Commended with my work ‘Alienated Tarago Landscape’ sponsored by curator and artist Julia Martin at the National Paddington Art Prize for Australian Landscape last night. What a crowd! Such an incredible exhibition of Australian talent you must get out to see.

Heartfelt thanks goes out to Paddington Art Prize sponsors Chris Antico and Marlene Antico AOM founder and co-sponsor. Also big thanks to Pia Antico for all her help assisting the organisation of such a mammoth event. Thank you to Julia Martin for being so fond of my work. Her lovely words can be found in the finalist announcement speeches.

Thank you also to the esteemed judges Jackie Dunn (Senior Curator of Exhibitions AGNSW, Ian Grant (artist) and Sasha Grishin AM, FAHA Emeritus Professor ANU

And lastly, thank you to lovely Rebecca Brady from Rathenart Printing who assisted me in the reproduction of my work for my creation.

PLEASE JOIN ME along with the other National finalists on Saturday October 12th 2-3pm Art Leven Gallery Redfern with the incredible Radio presenter & co-host and producer of TV program Antiques Roadshow DownUnder Claudia Chan Shaw who is hosting selected winners and finalists in conversation at the Gallery. The artist talk will also be live-streamed on socials.

Hope to see you there!

NATIONAL FINALIST - PADDINGTON ART PRIZE - 2024

Couldn’t be more thrilled to be one of 42 selected finalists from a record response to the call for entries from across Australia in the 2024 Paddington Art Prize with my work ‘Alienated Tarago Landscape’.

The Paddington Art Prize principally sponsored by Chris Antico, Founded and Co-Sponsored by Marlene Antico AOM now in its 21st year, has become Australia’s preeminent landscape prize of unmatched calibre. This is largely due to Marlene's deliberate selection of independent judges, each with decades of experience and a significant contribution to the Australian arts.

Each year the prize aims to discover new talents and invigorate the art market with iconic styles that reflect Australia’s topography and “cultural ethos.” A family-run initiative, the connectedness extends to finalists and winners who become life-long members with subsequent career highlights celebrated and shared online.

The $30,000 Paddington Art Prize Exhibition of National Finalists for a painting inspired by the Australian Landscape will officially be opened on Thursday October 10th at 6-8pm, Art Leven Gallery, 17 Thurlow St, Redfern NSW at 6-8pm. With exhibition continuing until the October 20th 2024 11am-5pm with all works for sale both online and at the exhibition.

I would like to thank the very esteemed judging panel Jackie Dunn Senior Curator of Exhibitions at AGNSW, Australian art historian, art critic and curator Emeritus Professor ANU Sasha Grishin AM, FAHA and prominent Australian artist Ian Grant for selecting my work amidst this very fine list of National Finalists.

The Online Exhibition of National Finalists is currently viewable on our website

✳ For all Admin  &  Sales Enquiries Contact   info@paddingtonartprize.com.au  

‘Alienated Tarago Landscape’, 167cm x 127cm, Hand painted archival pigment print, mixed media and photomontage on cotton rag.

ART ACQUISITION - PERMANENT COLLECTION HURSTVILLE MUSEUM & GALLERY - 2025

I’m thrilled to announce the acquisition of two of my works into the permanent collection of Hurstville Museum and Gallery through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program.

The two acquisitions are mixed media works ‘In the wake of my insomnia’ and ‘Playground in my wake’ which were created in 2022 as part of my awarded artist-in-residence at Carss Park through Georges River Council and Hurstville Museum & Gallery and were exhibited as part of my solo show ‘In the wake of…’

During my residency I focused on the site of Carss Park and reflected upon my childhood home across the bay. The residency provided me with the opportunity to investigate my past, inspiring poetic evocations that explore residual experiences through the subconscious whilst simultaneously exploring elements drawing on my Maltese heritage and local connection to the South/South West of Sydney.

Feel so honoured to be part of this great collection.

Image 1: ‘In the wake of my insomnia’, watercolour and photomontage on watercolour paper, 2022

Image 2: ‘Playground in my wake’, watercolour and photomontage on watercolour paper, 2022

#contemporaryart #regionalgallery #culturalgiftsaustralia #permanentcollection #culturalgifts #artcollection #hurstvilleregionalgalleryandmuseum #louisachircop #australianmalteseartist #stgeorgeandsutherlandshire

‘In the wake of my insomnia’, watercolour and photomontage on watercolour paper, 2022

‘Playground in my wake’, watercolour and photomontage on watercolour paper, 2022

RECIPIENT - AWARDED EXHIBITION AND ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE 2025 - 'MUZA' MALTA'S NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS

Looks like I’ll be jetting back to Malta early 2025! So thrilled to have been awarded a residency and solo exhibition for my proposed project investigating my Australian Maltese bicultural identity at MUZA Malta’s National Museum of Fine Arts Valletta (branded Malta’s National Community Art Museum). My proposed project, exhibition and residency will take place in the 16th Century amazing UNESCO World Heritage site courtyard and building ‘The Auberge D’Italie’ built in 1574 home to Malta’s fantastic national art collection. Super excited!! Bring on the jet lag…2024 planning starts now… Stay tuned!

#australianmalteseartist #internationalexhibition #artistinresidence #muza #artist #installation #sculpture #painting #drawing #ceramics #maltanationalmuseumoffinearts #valletta #project #biculturalidentity #surrealist #womeninthearts #HeritageMalta #maltanationalcommunityartmuseum #communityproject #australianartist #contemporaryart #art

MUZA Installation and exhibition site.

Artist residency and exhibition space inside MUZA.

MUZA foyer Valletta

MUZA Entrance UNESCO World Heritage site ‘The Auberge d’Italie’ built in 1574 Valletta Malta.

FINALIST - ADELAIDE PERRY DRAWING PRIZE PLC SYDNEY - 2023

A fantastic start to 2024!... So honoured to be one of the 40 incredible finalists from across Australia in the Adelaide Perry Drawing Prize at PLC Sydney…Congratulations to all finalists!

This year's judge, Emeritus Professor Sasha Grishin AM, FAHA, art historian, art critic and curator, selected a shortlist of 40 works. The Adelaide Perry Prize for Drawing is a $25,000 acquisitive art award among the most significant of its kind in the country. Named in honour of respected painter, printmaker and draughtswoman, Miss Adelaide Elizabeth Perry (1891-1973) who taught Visual Arts at PLC Sydney from 1930 to 1962, the Prize attracts submissions from around the country, and this year was no different.

From over 400 entries, Emeritus Professor Sasha Grishin, art historian, art critic and curator, has selected this year's Perry Prize shortlist. Just prior to the opening of the Exhibition of Finalists, Sasha Grishin will return to the Gallery to select the overall winner.

Sasha Grishin is the author of over 30 books about art, including Australian Art: A History, and wrote for The Canberra Times as art critic for fortv-five years. He has delivered guest lectures at universities, art galleries and museums throughout Australia, Asia, North America and Europe including Harvard University, the Hermitage Museum, Being Central Academy and London University. PLC Sydney has been honoured to have had his participation in this capacity.

From over 400 entries, Emeritus Professor Sasha Grishin, art historian, art critic and curator, has selected this year's Perry Prize shortlist. Just prior to the opening of the Exhibition of Finalists, Sasha Grishin will return to the Gallery to select the overall winner.

Sasha Grishin is the author of over 30 books about art, including Australian Art: A History, and wrote for The Canberra Times as art critic for forty-five years. He has delivered guest lectures at universities, art galleries and museums throughout Australia, Asia, North America and Europe including Harvard University, the Hermitage Museum, Beijing Central Academy and London University. PLC Sydney has been honoured to have had his participation in this capacity.

The 2024 finalists are

Kim Anderson, Andrew Antoniou, Suzanne Archer, Deborah Beck, John Bokor, Julie Bradley, Kate Briscoe, Louisa Chircop, Matthew Clarke, Jo Darvall, Dana Dion, Jacqui Driver, Yvonne East, David Fairbairn, Kaye Green, Jenny Herbert-Smith, Todd Hunter, Locust Jones, Barbie Kjar, Yvonne Langshaw, Rosie Lloyd-Giblett, Marco Luccio, Paula Martin, Annabel Mason, Kerry McInnis, Noel McKenna, Tony Mighell, Alexandra Mills, Robbi Neal, Geoffrey Odgers, Catherine O'Donnell, Vicki Parish, Amanda Penrose Hart, Melinda Schawel, Jeannette Siebols, Sally Simpson, Wendy Teakel, Claire Tozer, Anna Warren and Steve Woodbury.

#perrydrawingprize #plc #drawing #nationalartprize #finalists #art #contemporarydrawing #adelaideperrydrawingprize2024 #PLCSydney

'KALOSKAGATHOS' - CURATED GROUP EXHIBITION - PRESENTED BY PALMER PROJECTS POST SPACE EXETER - 2023

I’m pleased to announced that my work will be featured amongst a fantastic lineup of female Australian contemporary artists in the upcoming group exhibition 'KALOSKAGATHOS' curated by Diana Palmer at Post Space Exeter, and I must say, I couldn’t be more thrilled to be working with her.

Post Space, Exeter presents ‘Kaloskagathos’, an exhibition bringing together works by contemporary Australian artists who explore, embrace or challenge the classical artistic tradition. Drawing inspiration from renowned works of literature, history, mythology and cultural traditions to explore the themes of feminism, motherhood, domesticity and the goddess, these artists works, in varying ways, embody the power and majesty of female sexuality whilst subverting the classical idea that promoted the supremacy of the male form. 

Featuring Jedda-Daisy Cullen, Louisa Chircop, Belynda Henry, Solomon Kammer, Sophy Reynolds, Mirra Whale and Hayley West and spanning different materials and formats - painting, sculpture, installation, photography and drawing - these artists come together looking at the relics of the enduring preoccupation of greek art with the human form as well as contemporary art’s ongoing relationship with the classical past. 

The term ‘Kaloskagathos’, combines two adjectives, with kalos designating outward, and agathos — inward perfection. It is an abstract concept, unreal in its varied ideals and yet a word that correlates to a system of values that represents the development of any human society, a social, ethical and aesthetic assesment criteria. In the Symposium, Plato explicitly warns against becoming fixated on the beauty of the body. Instead, he argues that the energy released by the sight of the gorgeous figure needs to be channeled to a desire for a deeper beauty – that of the soul, of the good, of the divine. 

Through a series of pairings and juxtapositions, alternatively dramatic and understated, the exhibition ‘Kaloskagathos’, aims to provoke conversations between the classical traditions of femininity, beauty and power; as history provides us a record, and from it one basic, inescapable, and ultimately unconscionable truth stands out: the ideals women are asked to embody, regardless of culture or continent, have been hammered out almost exclusively by men. 

essay excerpt 

Diana Palmer, 2024 

Please join us on us Saturday 10 February 2024 2-5pm at Post Space Exeter for the opening of KALOSKAGATHOS a group show including

View exhibition catalogue and essay here

Please contact (link) Diana Palmer Exhibition and Acquisition Consultant for artwork for enquiries

Please note Solomon Kammer's inclusion in this exhibition is courtesy of her incredible representative gallery Yavuz Gallery, Surry Hills @yavuzgallery @maxhomaei

All celebratory drinks courtesy of @merrigangs_ and @stmaurwines

#artconsultant #artconsultancv #dianapalmer #palmerproiects #postspace #exeter #southernhighlands #groupexhibition #femaleartists #women #kaloskagathos #contemporaryart #painting #ceramics #mixedmedia #australianartists

Exhibition invite

'SHADOW SANCTUARY' - DEBUT INTERNATIONAL SOLO - MARIE GALLERY5 MALTA

Very pleased to announce I’ll be having my debut international solo exhibition ‘Shadow Sanctuary’ with the lovely Maria Galea Gallery owner and Art Advisor of Marie Gallery5 in Sliema Malta opening 3rd Nov 7.30pm. Please feel free to come along.

Maria is a passionate advocate for artists and unstoppable force in the Arts industry in Malta/Europe representing Maltese and international talent. As a Maltese Australian artist I’m super excited and proud to be working with her and looking forward to my upcoming exhibition soon.

…”Just as the the moon needs the sun to reflect light, I need the moon to cast my shadow."…

Louisa Chircop

'Shadow Sanctuary' by Louisa Chircop invites viewers on an evocative journey into the profound depths of the artist's conceptual realm. Chircop's oeuvre is a contemplative fusion of personal experiences, art history, and the intricate tapestry of psychological phenomena. Within this exhibition, each artwork serves as a portal, unlocking the enigmatic "shadows of the self," as guided by Chircop's subconscious wanderings within her inner sanctum, intimately intertwined with her Maltese Australian heritage.

Chircop's artistic inquiry transcends conventional boundaries, daring to explore the intricate facets of the human condition-pain, pleasure, guilt, and shame. Her exploration delves into an innovative interpretation of religious sexuality, an intersection where the sacred and the profane merge to construct a deeply personal tantra. This fusion is a vibrant celebration of the terrestrial, the cosmic, and the spiritual-a form of contemporary self-devotion that venerates the Earth, the universe, and spirituality. Amidst the encompassing corporeal darkness, fragments of illumination emerge, unveiling metamorphosed, reinvented, hybrid, and reborn iterations of the artist herself. This creative rebirth finds its genesis in Chircop's immigrant European lineage, rooted in the resolute traditions of medieval antiquity.

3rd - 22nd November @mariegallery5
For more information


#contemporaryart #exhibition #artreel #exhibitionposter #austrailanart #artsydney #malta #gallery #collector #internationalartist #malteseaustralianartist

FINALIST - PADDINGTON ART PRIZE 20TH ANNIVERSARY EXHIBITION - 2023

Couldn’t be more thrilled to be one of 53 National finalists in the 2023 Paddington Art Prize for their epic 20th Anniversary exhibition and celebrations with my work ‘Foreign Body at Pupit Rock - Bundanon’.

The Paddington Art Prize has become the preeminent Australian Landscape Prize of unsurpassed calibre due to Marlene's deliberate choosing of independent judges who each have decades of experience in and contribution toward the Australian Arts.

Each year the Prize aims to discover new talents and invigorate the art market with iconic styles that reflect Australia’s topography and “cultural ethos.” A family-run initiative, the connectedness extends to finalists and winners who become life-long members with subsequent career highlights celebrated and shared online.

The 20th Annual $30,000 Paddington Art Prize Exhibition of National Finalists for a painting inspired by the Australian Landscape will officially be opened on Thursday October 12th at Cooee Art Leven, 17 Thurlow St, Redfern NSW at 6-8pm. With exhibition continuing until the October 22nd 2023 with all works for sale both online and at the exhibition.

I would like to thank the esteemed judging panel Tracey Cooper-Lavery from the National Museum of Australia, Adj. Professor Margo Neale from the National Gallery of Australia and esteemed multi-award and Archibald Prize winning Australian artist Tony Costa for selecting my work amidst this very fine list of National Finalists.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑰𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎

7pm 𝒐𝒏 𝑶𝒄𝒕 12𝒕𝒉.

The Online Exhibition of National Finalists will be viewable on our website from Sept 22nd 2023.

✳ For all Admin  &  Sales Enquiries Contact   info@paddingtonartprize.com.au  

‘Foreign Body at Pupit Rock - Bundanon’ 2023, mixed media and photomontage on archival watercolour paper, approx 66cm x 86cm

FINALIST - HAZELHURST ART ON PAPER AWARD -2023

So stoked to be a finalist this year amongst this stellar line up of Australian talent in one of Australia’s most significant national awards for artists working on paper!

Join us this Friday 15th Sept at 6pm for the official opening at Hazelhurst Arts Centre.

Now in its twelfth year, The biennial Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award is a significant national exhibition that aims to elevate the status of work on paper while supporting and promoting artists working with this medium.

With awards totalling $26,000 the biennial Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award showcases outstanding art created with, on or about paper. Awards include the $15,000 major award, the $5,000 Young and Early Career Artist Award, the $5,000 Friends of Hazelhurst Local Artist Award, and the $1,000 People's Choice Award. Hazelhurst's installation crew also select an artist for the Residency Award: a 4-week studio residency. The exhibition will present a diverse range of works including drawing, printmaking, collage, photography, sculpture, paper cuts and video.

 This year Hazelhurst received entries from 890 artists from across Australia. Congratulations to the 82 finalists selected for the Hazelhurst Art on Paper Award 2023. Finalists will be exhibited in the Main Gallery at Hazelhurst Arts Centre from 16 September to 12 November 2023.

This year’s judge and guest speaker is esteemed Australian artist Deborah Kelly.

Awards

Awards include the $15,000 major award, the $5,000 Young and Early Career Artist Award, the $5,000 Friends of Hazelhurst Local Artist Award, and the $1,000 People’s Choice Award. Hazelhurst’s installation crew also select an artist for the Residency Award: a 4-week studio residency in the historic Hazelhurst Cottage.

HAZELHURST ART ON PAPER AWARD 2023 FINALISTS

Margaret Ackland | Carlos Almenar Diaz | Suzanne Archer | Tony Ameneiro | Kim Anderson | Sharna Barker | Lee Bethel | Patrizia Biondi | Amber Boardman | M Bozzec | Jennifer Buntine | Peter Burke | Michelle Cawthorn | Armando Chant | Cindy Chen | Ning Chen | Louisa Chircop | Matthew Clarke | Adrienne Doig | Kelly Doley | Jacqui Driver | Christine Druitt-Preston | David Eastwood | Julia Flanagan | Oliver Fontany | Freya Fristad | Todd Fuller | Aidan Gageler | Angus Gardner | Phillip George | Amala Groom | Yvette Hamilton | Tina Havelock Stevens | Nicci Haynes | Bridget Hillebrand | Anna Hoyle | Amber-rose Hulme | Kirrily Humphries | Phil James | Freya Jobbins | Joya Kang | Nicole Kelly |  Barbie Kjar | David Lawrey & Jaki Middleton | Christopher Lawrie | Hyun Hee Lee | Jenna Lee | Belem Lett | Brenda Livermore | Roman Longginou | Alanna Lorenzon | Kasane Low | Kevin McKay | Stephanie Monteith | Mylyn Nguyen | Adam Norton | Toshiko Oiyama | Liz Payne | Lori Pensini | Izabela Pluta | Jasmine Poole & Chris Sewell | Diego Ramírez | Brian Robinson | Douglas Schofield | Liz Shreeve | Benedict Sibley | Chanel Sohier | Peter Solness | Mignon Steele | Ali Tahayori | Sherna Teperson | Teo Treloar | Garry Trinh | Kate Vassallo | Sylvie Veness | Hilary Warren | Peta West | Paul White | Amanda Williams | Belinda Yee | Mei Zhao | Tianli Zu

‘Left leg right’, mixed media and photomontage on hand painted archival pigment print on cotton rag, 167cm x 113cm, 2023 by Louisa Chircop

PUBLISHED - 170+ page Accompanying Digital Catalogue for 'In the arms of unconsciousness - Women, feminism and the surreal'

Our 170+ page digital catalogue for our exhibition ‘In the arms of unconsciousness - Women, Feminism and the Surreal’ curated by Carrie Kibbler at Hazelhurst Arts Centre is now live on Hazelhurst Art Centre’s website! 💗 So special to have this accompanying text featuring twenty two of Australia’s significant female artists with important essays written by an incredible all female crew…Courtney Kidd, Chloe Wolifson and Kathleen Linn. With heartfelt thanks for your wonderful essays 🙏

It looks fantastic! Huge thanks to assistant curator Naomi Stewart who designed the whole catalogue and Carrie Kibbler for all her dedication and hard work.

Lovely to be mentioned in Carrie’s opening introduction with my artwork featured on the right. So thrilled!

Enjoy!

See link: https://issuu.com/hazelhurstregionalgallery/docs/in_the_arms_of_unconsciousness_digital_catalogue_i?fr=xKAE9_zU1NQ

The exhibition has been extended due to popular demand and continues…

Currently showing @hazelhurstartscentre as part of ‘In the arms of unconsciousness - Women, feminism and the surreal’ curated by Carrie Kibbler. A landmark first cross-generational exhibition that brings together 22 leading and significant female Australian artists together to examine feminism and the surreal until 10th September.

📸 @silversalt_photography

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Review - The Sydney Morning Herald Spectrum- Art Critic John McDonald

It’s not everyday you’re reviewed by The Sydney Morning Herald’s art critic John McDonald. It’s not everyday you get a couple of mentions.

Was such a thrill to discover this great article in Saturday’s Art and Design columns The surreal deal: Art inspired by the unspeakable about our exhibition ‘In the arms of unconsciousness - Women, feminism and the surreal’ curated by Carrie Kibbler at Hazelhurst Arts Centre. Not to mention, it was a double thrill to find my artwork published on the header of the review on his website.

This landmark first cross-generational exhibition currently showcasing 22 leading and significant Australian female artists aims to look at the links between feminism and surrealism in Australian art and is on at Hazelhurst’s Art Centre until the September 3rd 2023. Read John McDonald’s review >here

COMING SOON - A LANDMARK AUSTRALIAN-FIRST CROSS-GENERATIONAL EXHIBITION AT HAZELHURST ARTS CENTRE

I couldn’t be more excited and honoured to be curated in this Australian first-landmark cross-generational survey exhibition. ‘In the Arms of Unconsciousness: Women, Feminism and the Surreal’ curated by Carrie Kibbler (and assisted by Naomi Stewart, assistant curator) will open late June 2023 at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery and Arts Centre. The exhibition, showcasing a stellar line up of 22 significant Australian women artists, aims to look at the links between feminism and surrealism in Australian art.

The exhibition is to be officially launched on Friday 30 June 2023 6pm in the main gallery at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery and Arts Centre and will continue until Sunday 3rd September 2023. The exhibition will also be complimented with a jam packed program of interviews, artist talks and other promotional events including a special feature film presenting the artists in show and accompanying digital catalogue with essays written by leading Australian arts writers.

Exhibiting Artists: Del Kathryn Barton, Vivienne Binns, Pat Brassington, Louisa Chircop, Madeleine Kelly, Deborah Kelly, Juz Kitson, Lucy O’Doherty, Caroline Rothwell, Kaylene Whiskey, Jelena Telecki, Lynda Draper, Freya Jobbins, Jenny Orchard, Jill Orr, Patricia Piccinini, Julie Rrap, Honey Long and Prue Stent, Marikit Santiago, Anne Wallace and Amanda Williams.

The exhibition will examine the waves of feminism in Australian which began in the 1970s to the early 1980s, and again in the early 1990s and how they were directly linked to the feminist art and Riot Grrrl movement in which female artists and theorists began to rethink and reclaim how the female body was represented. Artists during this period include Vivienne Binns, Jill Orr, Pat Brassington and Anne Wallace.

More recently, a younger generation of female artists are working with elements of the surreal, the psychoanalytic, the unconscious and the fantastical in their practice, with several specifically citing the influence of the surrealists in their practice. Artists include Del Kathryn Barton, Louisa Chircop, Madeline Kelly, Deborah Kelly, Juz Kitson, Lucy O’Doherty, Caroline Rothwell and Amanda Williams.

The exhibition proposes that there has been an intrinsic link between feminism and the surreal, particularly in Australia, and this current wave is most notable since 2012 in that it aligns with the fourth wave of feminism.

More news to come on this amazing exhibition!

Hazelhurst has received funding from Create NSW and Sutherland Shire Council for this project.