Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Margaret Olley Art Centre

On the weekend we made a quick trip down to the Tweed Regional Gallery at Murwillumbah, Northern NSW, to see the new Margaret Olley Art Centre.

This is a recreation of Margaret Olley's studio and some elements of her home.  Its a great experience, even if you're not a big fan of her work.

After Margaret Olley's passing in July 2011, an estimated 6,000-10,000 items were recorded, documented and removed from her house in Duxford Street in Sydney, and then installed into the Tweed Regional Gallery as a vision of how Margaret's house and studio looked.  But its not just how it looks, it also has a smell, a feeling, a light that makes you sense Margaret's presence.

Its a fascinating look into her world of art and collecting, how 'stuff' and belongings accumulated over a lifetime say something about a person.  A reflection on self. 

I just wish my 'stuff' in my studio would one day be appreciated like Margaret's is!

www.artgallery.tweed.nsw.gov.au

Margaret's Kitchen.  I loved how her art materials
spread into her kitchen, mingling with the spices
and oil bottles. 

Looking into her lounge, across her dining area, and
her painting chair. 
No purpose-built studio, her house was the studio.

My Craig looking through one of the 'windows'

They have doorways you can look through into her 'house',
so you feel like you are really in the space not an art gallery.

Where the gallery meets Margaret's house...

One of Margaret's painting palettes.  Oil paint in sculptural lumps,
one wonders how she painted so well!

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