Volcanic Bloom explores imaginative minerals in strange environments and possible futures.
Ari Athans plays with concepts of physical variables such as atmospheric conditions, planet core composition, temperature, sun exposure, gravity, mineral composition, rotational energy, magnetic field and radiation.
“I like to imagine worlds where there might be acid yellow sulphuric seas’, she says. 'Many of these forms are an expression of alien environments creating plant mineral hybrids. Abstract forms push in and out of order and chaos, as occurs in mineral habits and their habitats.'
Colour is a strong component of these works as the artist is inspired by faceted gemstones. Volcanos bring up magnificent plumes and magma from the centre of a planet. ‘What this magma is and what might crytalsize from it’s molten state is where I am interested in going’.
Athans paints on mild steel. The surface is treated like a geological substrata map. Layers are built up to be stripped back through physical and chemical means. The rust representing the passing of time within a geological framework.
July 2016
The Law of Superposition states that in any sequence of layered rocks, a given layer must be older than any layer on top of it. A basic law of geochronology, it is fundamental to the interpretation of Earth’s history and understanding the order of things. For Ari Athans, who studied Geology and worked in the mining and exploration industry before training in jewellery and object design, it has become the foundation on which she forms her art practice.
Materiality, experimentation and transformative states are constant threads in Ari’s work. Science informs the process, but so too does intuition and emotion. Using mild steel and enamel, she reimagines geological interactions and events as fantastical new landscapes that represent passages of time and moments of being. Her stacked ceramic forms are a natural progression of this highly sculptural painting style, allowing human interaction in physical space and encouraging contemplation on geologic time and how we relate to it.
Ari Athans studied a Bachelor of Applied Science (Geology) at University of Technology Sydney (1988), before completing her Diploma in Gemmology at the Gemmological Association of Australia (1989), and Associate Diploma of Arts (Jewellery Object Design) at the Sydney Institute of Technology (1994). A finalist in the Moreton Bay Art Awards (2017) and Smart State Designer at the Design Institute of Australia (2008), her work has been exhibited in solo and group shows through Australia and internationally such as Sydney Contemporary (2020); Trace 4101 Festival, Brisbane (2019); Expanded discrete states, Artisan Brisbane (2018); 15 Artists, Redcliffe Art Gallery (2017); Silver, Museum of Brisbane (2014); Freestyle, Melbourne Museum, Queensland University of Technology Art Museum, Object Gallery and Milan Museum, Italy (2007); Blurred Boundaries, Kick Arts Cairns (2007); South Project, Santiago Museum, Chile (2006); Self, United Kingdom tour (2004); Schmuck, International Handwerksmesse, Munich (2001); and X-Ray Craft, Queensland Art Gallery (1997).
Congratulations to Ari Athans whose work ‘A ripple and a rock’, made in collaboration with Urban Art Projects is now installed at Wentworth Point in Sydney.
This work is inspired by sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and shale which make up the ripple valley of Sydney Harbour.
Seeking to re-invoke the soft and natural elements of the area, ‘A ripple and a rock’ signals a place and a point of arrival along the urban coastline. The forms appear to have tumbled together and washed ashore, their shape framing the bay and supporting view lines across the water.
The disparate textural layers of Aggregates in Construct blend the myriad forms and patterns of nature marked by the boundaries of human action. Ari Athans’ stacked, sculptural arrangements flow between the handmade, organic and industrial, marking the liminal points where the landscape rests upon and collides with the built world.
Ari Athans is interviewed in the latest issue of Vault Magazine about the breadth of her creative practice - between sculpture, painting, and jewellery.
Ari Athans' work has been selected for Redcliffe Gallery's 15 Artists Exhibition 2017.
This annual award plays a pivotal role in the growth of the Moreton Bay Regional Council Art Collection. The $8000 acquisitive prize exhibits 15 Artists that reflect the collection’s focus of culture, identity, spirit and sense of place.
Artists selected for 2017 are Ari Athans, Glenn Barkley, Sue Beyer, Megan Cope, Hannah Cutts, Jeremy Eden, Martin Edge, Ian Friend, Stephen Hart, Barbara Heath, Abbey McCulloch, Kate McKay, Stephen Nothling, Graeme Peebles and Nan Dingle.
The exhibition runs from 1 September - 28 October 2017.
Ari Athans work 'Felsic Plume' has been selected as a finalist in the 2017 Moreton Bay Art Award. This annual acquisitive award exhibition is supported by the Moreton Bay Regional Council. The Art Award offers two acquisitive prizes of $7,500 and two supplementary $1,000 prizes for a Local Artists and a People’s Choice Award.
The Moreton Bay Region Art Award has featured prominent and emerging artists for the last 24 years, and is now an important feature in the cultural landscape of the region.
Dr Campbell Gray, Director of the University of Queensland Art Museum is the 2017 judge.
