Elam Artist in Residence: Rose Nolan

For immediate release
August 15 2002

Elam Artist in Residence: Rose Nolan

“Help Me Do Less.”

That’s the message in the latest art work by Rose Nolan, Artist in Residence at Elam School of Fine Arts at The University of Auckland.

Rose Nolan, a Melbourne based artist in residence for six weeks, arrived on July 22 and will leave at the end of this month.

Along with Marco Fusinato, Artist in Residence arriving in September, Rose will exhibit recent work at the Gus Fisher Gallery in October.

For twenty years Rose’s work has moved across a range of materials and formats, embracing constructed work, word work, and flat work.

For much of this time her major point of reference has been Russian Constructivist art, from the period of ‘pioneer modernism’ with its romantic aspirations to achieve social and political change through art, using media such as revolutionary banners, flags, cut outs and posters.

Her latest work at Elam is a wall banner with large painted letters, floor to ceiling, in flame red on a white background, circling the entire studio.

“It was going to say ‘Help Me Do More’, but instead, it says ‘Help Me Do Less’. I was so exhausted, that when I changed the focus it was a huge relief!” she says. “We had to put up scaffolding, and the work was completed over three rather long days. The facilities here are fantastic, and everyone, from students to staff, has been eager to help.”

Rose has always preferred to use simple, robust materials such as hessian, cardboard, glue, staples, stiff paper and commercial paints.

In recent times Rose has shifted attention to a more personal adaptation of the devices and strategies of a constructivist language, to illuminate the mechanics of artists doing their ‘business as usual’ in the world. For example she created a large red flag with white lettering declaring “I Was Here”, which was flown outside the St Kilda City Hall in Melbourne.

At the heart of Rose’s reflection on the history of art making there is always a whimsical acknowledgement of the need to make one’s own history; to create one’s own archive, to stage one’s own significant events and to construct one’s own monuments.

Rose and Marco’s show opens at the Gus Fisher Gallery, The Kenneth Myers Centre, 74 Shortland Street, on October 25 2002.

ENDS

For further information please contact Natalie Baragwanath, Baldwin Boyle Group, Phone 48 66 544, or Anne Marie Daly-Peoples, Elam School of Fine Arts, The University of Auckland, phone 3737 599 x 8000

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