ARTEXPRESS Virtual Gallery

Matthew Hardy

Oxley College

Genetic Engineering - at what cost?

Sculpture

Matthew Hardy

Oxley College

Genetic Engineering - at what cost?

Sculpture

The human species considers itself the dominant species, superior in every way, the apex predator. As humans we can critically think, analyse, act accordingly, construct languages, tools, cities and more. However, some still seek to further improve the human species through the manipulation of our DNA. They attempt to forcefully cut, paste and rearrange our incredibly complex structures. Messing with six million years of evolution surely doesn’t come without devastating complications, horrific failures and hideous experimentation. It’s not natural. Why mess with perfection? My body of work explores, through exaggeration, the confronting nightmarish failures and consequences of severe gene alteration.

Clay Holle

Reddam House

Resilience, Resistance, Persistence

Sculpture

Clay Holle

Reddam House

Resilience, Resistance, Persistence

Sculpture

My intent in my body of work was to explore how plant-like structures can be manipulated to shape and bend their directional growth. Using the malleable properties of wax I melted and shaped ‘branches’ supported with wire bones to build abstract structures that defy nature’s normal patterns, then incorporated elements of wire and bindings to restrict and encourage altered growth. The direction that each branch takes is affected by these constraints just as experiences alter one’s path in life.

Daniel Toomey

Sydney Grammar School

When Composure Returns

Sculpture

Daniel Toomey

Sydney Grammar School

When Composure Returns

Sculpture

I am drawn to the genre of still life by its subjectivity, forcing viewers to impose their perspective on the work. Wood carving, like a still life, is static, and creates a ‘snapshot’ of a time so we never forget. It is unique in that the artist is taking away, not adding on. My body of work represents my personal Year Twelve experience. Spending hours at the workbench, I began to notice the connection between time falling away and the shavings of jelutong collecting beneath my feet, making me acutely conscious of my position in and the passage of time.

Ella Powditch

Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay Campus

Cabinet Of Curiosities

Sculpture

Ella Powditch

Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay Campus

Cabinet Of Curiosities

Sculpture

On the cusp of the scientific discoveries of the 18th century, cabinets of curiosities were a precursor to what we now think of as modern museums. They were personal collections of exotic objects (botany, antiquities, astronomy etc), gathered from around the globe that told a story about the world and its history. Grounded in my love for order and categorising, my body of work is a stand-alone interactive sculpture that invites the audience to explore the almost forgotten art of collecting and presenting objects. While it references the scientific method, it also tells a story through themes that resonate personally.

Charisse Gregory

Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts

Earthworks

Sculpture

Charisse Gregory

Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts

Earthworks

Sculpture

The concept for my body of work stemmed from the Australian bushfires and their effect on nature. I find interest in the natural world and how industrialised societies destroy their environment. My work represents the effect human structures have on their environment, where the natural surroundings are pillaged by the development of industrial and domestic architecture. The ceramic pots create the organic shapes and textures of the natural environment while the wood, rope and metal components represent industrial structures. My work comments on the effect of modern society’s inventions and how they mould and reshape the earth.