'Desert Of New Ideas'

Oh dear !. Just as the Sydney Contemporary was launched this weekend with a myriad of writers proclaiming it's brilliance (especially those whose bosses were sponsoring it) comes a report from the UK Sunday Times savaging an Australian art exhibition at the Royal Academy in London.

Rachel Griffiths at the Olsen Irwin                       'Sydney Sun'                                                  John Olsen   

As our snaps show actor Rachel Griffiths attended a media conference at the Olsen Irwin Gallery in Woolahra and also the exhibition at the Carriageworks in deepest Alexandria. The Olsen Irwin is run by Tim Olsen, son of one of our most celebrated artists John Olsen who recently exhibited at a Mayfair gallery.
The Time's art critic Waldermar Januszczak has labelled Olsen's Sydney Sun (purchased for the National Gallery in Canberra for $500K) and on display at the RA as evoking " the sensation of standing under a cascade of diarrhoea.”. Olsen has hit back accusing Januszczak of attempting to "put colonials in their place".

Continues Januszczak :"Australia is let down by lots of the art, which is weedy, provincial and all too European.". 
God only knows what our British critic would think of our publicity friendly Charles Billich who a local writer recently trilled had presented a grieving Katherine Jackson with a portrait of her late son Michael Jackson. Below is our much watched Youtube video of the master at work.

Sign Of The Times?

Rumours are swirling around the ritzy art galleries of Paddington and Woollahra that 2 of the areas most important galleries and dealers are to join forces.

Tim Olsen, the amiable owner of the Tim Olsen Gallery and son of Australian artist John Olsen is said to be teaming up with respected dealer Rex Irwin.
Irwin would possibly have one of the countries best client lists and Tim has impeccable connections in business, social and show biz circles. Together they would form a formidable duo.               
The pair were recently spotted in a huddle at Tim's exhibition of new works by actor Noah Taylor (right) a fortnight ago, as our exclusive picture shows. That's one of Noah's paintings behind the 2 dealers. Can't quite work out what it says.

In A Neo Situationist Situation

Claudia Karvan

Noah & partner Dionne Harris

Actor Noah Taylor has been in showbiz most of his adult life, best known for his acting roles he has also been making music and painting since his teens but has only been exhibiting his work in the last five years, primarily in the UK.

Noah lives and works on the south coast of England and is the father of a four year old girl, politically and artistically he has been describing himself as a non committed catholic neo situationist.. Whatever that means




His latest exhibtion was at the Tim Olsen Gallery in Woollohara.

Says Noah   :"These images have dogged me all my life and I tend to avoid over analyzing  them or any creative endeavor for that matter. I never plan an image but often start with a template background of an isolated landscape that recurs in most of my work, it's an Australian landscape but nowhere in particular
The characters tend to be lonely isolated figures, but their situation is ambiguous, I prefer to keep the work untitled generally so as the viewer can read into it whatever they like. Religious art and comic books are my two primary sources of inspiration and influence".
 The show was a sell-out  so it seems neo situationism is all the rage. fellow actors and pals Jack Thompson and Claudia Karvan were on hand to lend support.

Bodies Everywhere-Floating In Water

To our favourite art gallery in Woolahra-the Tim Olsen Gallery for a new exhibition by Martine Emdur (pictured below).

Vee & Grant

Fran McPherson & Sarah Grant

Martine is known for her oil paintings executed on a grand scale with the main subject being nude swimmers submerged under water.
Emdur, from Bondi Beach captures her great love of water and presents timeless images of the human form enjoying expansive surfaces of uninterrupted water. The languid nudes surrender themselves to the ocean, their warm bodies juxtaposed against the cool water.

She's been exhibiting at major galleries around Australia for over ten years and is a collector's favourite with prices ranging from $6000 for a smaller work and up to $80,000 for one of the large canvases.
Isn't there some sort of Freudian treatise on all this water-something to do with sex?. Perhaps we'll ask her famous brother, the TV star Larry Emdur next time we see him. 

PJ Lane & Ashley Talbot

You can be sure when Martine exhibits the gallery will be packed and the red dots numerous. Amongst what looked like a well heeled crowd: top auctioneer Tim Goodman, model agent Grant Dwyer with a stunning blonde named Vee Troyak. (is Vee his new discovery?). P.J Lane turned up with his new girlfriend Ashley Talbot but they don't really want folks to know they are an item. So we wont tell a soul. Also there- photographer Rex Dupain (right with Tim Olsen) and one of Australia's hardest working models Sarah Grant who brought her pal Fran McPherson. 

You may have heard of Fran's oldest daughter who is also a model-Elle McPherson.

Martine Emdur at the Tim Olsen Gallery 4-22nd April.
 63 Jersey Road, Woollahra 61 2 9327 3922