Plimsoll Gallery
Centre for the Arts
Hunter Street, Hobart
Raymond Arnold, Irene Barberis, Narelle Jubelin, John Neeson, Patsy Payne, Stieg Persson, Debra Phillips and Anne Louise Rowe
Preface: Paul Zika, Essay: Maria Kunda.
24-page catalogue: ISBN 0 85901 898 9
Download PDF: Review – Death & Decoration, Art Monthly Online
Download PDF: Review – Death & Decoration, Siglo
Catalogue Preface: Paul Zika
Western art has a rich tradition of works that deal with the theme of death in a highly decorative manner – in architecture and both the ‘fine’ and ‘decorative’ arts. Modernist orthodoxy has dismissed decoration within the fine arts as frivolous and superficial: deemed inappropriate to a sombre reflection upon death. Raymond Arnold’s “Memory/History” is an evocative synthesis of the two, demonstrating how death and decoration can coexist; with decoration more than a mere tantalizing embellishment. This suite of prints stimulated a desire to’ curate an exhibition in which artists simultaneously contemplate the themes of Death and Decoration.