"Jacqueline Fraser's most recent works are witty reflections on the
attempts of Western societies to come to terms with an angst instilled
by war and terror and offer poignant and sharp diagnoses of a
schizophrenic political and social condition that attempts to maintain
both a state of emergency and business as usual. [. They] comprise and
bundle the artistic strategy Fraser has developed over the course of her
career-to address urgent social concerns by unfolding a panorama of
beauty and elegance that she undermines and subverts with texts that
appear in the form of signs, labels or captions. [.]
Fraser's formal approach to this end is unique. Her works combine
magnificent textile materials such as haute couture fabrics, lace and
brocade with more modest elements such as thread, cord, wire, ribbon and
cable. She then curves, bends, cuts, drapes, hangs and arranges these
materials into fragile forms. Like figures out of fashion magazines,
they are reminiscent of children's dress up dolls or emblematic drawings
and are presented in expansive installations that transform the gallery
space into labyrinthine textile chambers of baroque artifice. [.]
Fraser's installations have become increasingly luxurious and sumptuous
while her subject matter has progressively darkened. Language-snipped
from magazines, news programmes, poetry and slang fragments, as well as
the artist's own linguistic compositions-has become a central element in
her work. In many of the recent installations focusing on fashion and
dress codes, Fraser employs and unmasks both language and dress as
essential elements in social orientation and peer pressure as well as in
self-identification processes through reflection in the Other. The
[present installation] at Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, The Ventriloquist,
convenes eleven fashionably dressed male and female figures into a
conversation of empty platitudes and stiletto-sharp meanness. [.]
What frails, what frocks, what furs, what rocks! You can almost hear the
silk dresses swishing, glasses clinking, shallow conversation about
fashion, celebrities bickering. The figures are accompanied by texts
that function as speech bubbles, conveying idle chatter and listing the
trademark names of popular tranquillisers and anti-depressants. Without
the support of pharmaceuticals, Fraser's ensemble is not able to endure
the social arena."
Astrid Mania (excerpt from forthcoming article on Jacqueline Fraser for
Art Asia Pacific)
Jacqueline Fraser has exhibited widely internationally in a career that
spans more than two decades. In 2004 she was shortlisted for two major
art prizes, Artes Mundi in Cardif (one of 10 international artists) and
the Walter's Prize in Auckland (one of 4 New Zealand artists). In 2001-2
Fraser had a solo exhibition at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in
New York and in 2001 she represented New Zealand in their inaugural
presentation at the Venice Biennale - the full installation of which has
recently been acquired by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
Also in 2001, Fraser was selected for the Yokohama Triennale. Fraser's
work is held in every major public collection in New Zealand, the
National Gallery of Australia as well as numerous private and corporate
collections around the world. The Ventriloquist will be Fraser's third
solo exhibition with Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery.
Exhibition opening: Thursday February 3, 6 - 8pm
Exhibition dates: February 3 - 26, 2005
Gallery hours: Tuesday to Friday 10am - 6pm,
Saturday 11am - 6pm
attempts of Western societies to come to terms with an angst instilled
by war and terror and offer poignant and sharp diagnoses of a
schizophrenic political and social condition that attempts to maintain
both a state of emergency and business as usual. [. They] comprise and
bundle the artistic strategy Fraser has developed over the course of her
career-to address urgent social concerns by unfolding a panorama of
beauty and elegance that she undermines and subverts with texts that
appear in the form of signs, labels or captions. [.]
Fraser's formal approach to this end is unique. Her works combine
magnificent textile materials such as haute couture fabrics, lace and
brocade with more modest elements such as thread, cord, wire, ribbon and
cable. She then curves, bends, cuts, drapes, hangs and arranges these
materials into fragile forms. Like figures out of fashion magazines,
they are reminiscent of children's dress up dolls or emblematic drawings
and are presented in expansive installations that transform the gallery
space into labyrinthine textile chambers of baroque artifice. [.]
Fraser's installations have become increasingly luxurious and sumptuous
while her subject matter has progressively darkened. Language-snipped
from magazines, news programmes, poetry and slang fragments, as well as
the artist's own linguistic compositions-has become a central element in
her work. In many of the recent installations focusing on fashion and
dress codes, Fraser employs and unmasks both language and dress as
essential elements in social orientation and peer pressure as well as in
self-identification processes through reflection in the Other. The
[present installation] at Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, The Ventriloquist,
convenes eleven fashionably dressed male and female figures into a
conversation of empty platitudes and stiletto-sharp meanness. [.]
What frails, what frocks, what furs, what rocks! You can almost hear the
silk dresses swishing, glasses clinking, shallow conversation about
fashion, celebrities bickering. The figures are accompanied by texts
that function as speech bubbles, conveying idle chatter and listing the
trademark names of popular tranquillisers and anti-depressants. Without
the support of pharmaceuticals, Fraser's ensemble is not able to endure
the social arena."
Astrid Mania (excerpt from forthcoming article on Jacqueline Fraser for
Art Asia Pacific)
Jacqueline Fraser has exhibited widely internationally in a career that
spans more than two decades. In 2004 she was shortlisted for two major
art prizes, Artes Mundi in Cardif (one of 10 international artists) and
the Walter's Prize in Auckland (one of 4 New Zealand artists). In 2001-2
Fraser had a solo exhibition at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in
New York and in 2001 she represented New Zealand in their inaugural
presentation at the Venice Biennale - the full installation of which has
recently been acquired by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
Also in 2001, Fraser was selected for the Yokohama Triennale. Fraser's
work is held in every major public collection in New Zealand, the
National Gallery of Australia as well as numerous private and corporate
collections around the world. The Ventriloquist will be Fraser's third
solo exhibition with Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery.
Exhibition opening: Thursday February 3, 6 - 8pm
Exhibition dates: February 3 - 26, 2005
Gallery hours: Tuesday to Friday 10am - 6pm,
Saturday 11am - 6pm
View exhibition
Subscribe
© 2024
- About
- Subscribe
