S1 E1: Novice and expert Curiosity, openness and dialogue
Zo Gay
S9753760
Studio 1
Exercise
Novice and expert — Curiosity, openness and dialogue
Position / Dialogue
Novice, in dialogue with Melbourne painter, Angela Chauvin
Angela Chauvin is a Melbourne based painter who is currently studying a Master of Fine Art at RMIT, following her recent completion of a Bachelor of Fine Arts at RMIT and Honours year at VCA. “Angela’s work sits within the traditions of observational oil painting, documenting her experience of the physical world around her” (Stockrooms 2019).
Angela paints in situ (on location) directly onto a blank canvas or linen stretched over timber frames. She also paints on timber boards, stating that the firmness of the boards allows her to “push against” the surface applying “stronger gestures” as opposed to the springy-like surface of the stretched canvas and linen.
Figure 1. Angela shows the back of a painting on timber. Photo by Zo Gay
In 2019 Angela presented a solo exhibition titled “How is a Window” at Stockroom Gallery, Kyneton. Comprising paintings created in artists’ studios from 2016 to 2019, the series focuses on “how windows exist in these spaces symbolically and experientially … exploring the translation of perception of reality into visual and material artworks” (ibid 2019). Sourced from the Stockroom Gallery online room sheet, figures 2–6 are a selection of works from the exhibition, which display Angela’s observational style, creative vision and deep connection with her surroundings and subject matter.
Figure 2. Angela Chauvin, EmptyFull, 2016, oil on linen, 138x112cm
Figure 3. Angela Chauvin, Studio Things, 2017, oil on linen, 41x77cm
Figure 4. Angela Chauvin, The Way Out, 2018, oil on linen, 150x112cm
Figure 5. Angela Chauvin, Blue Print Room, 2019, oil on linen, 120x90cm
Figure 6. Angela Chauvin, Pink Pigeons on Brunswick, 2019, oil on linen, 80x60cm
During our meeting at her RMIT studio, Angela explained that she “draws with paint” and then “paints a little bit on the drawing”, describing the painting as the “placement of paint”, while the drawing – working with line, akin to “handwriting” – fosters spontaneity and immediacy in the making that further asserts her “voice” and personal connection to and with each piece.
Angela is now experimenting with “bringing in elements from her imagination and possibly from photographs”, although she is considering developing her concept first, then sourcing representational objects to paint in a new approach to expressing her imagination combined with her existing observational painting practice.
We also discussed one of her paintings, a work in progress of a charred landscape from recent bushfires (Figures 7–9).
Figure 7. Angela Chauvin, Untitled work in progress, 2022, charcoal and oil on linen, 120x240cm. Photo by Zo Gay
On location, Angela first drew on the canvas using a “chunck of charcoal” taken from the burnt landscape. Returning to her studio, she began building the work with paint. Anglea states her intention is to include fragmented pieces of herself in the artwork and will need to source representational objects to paint to achieve this outcome.
To quote, “I want to bring in other elements, which will be me, in pieces. Then I’ll need to find objects that symbolise those pieces of me, and actually paint them in real life … I will be painting a collage of things from life, but they will not neccessarily be in front of me at the same time.”
When asked about the title, Angela replies, “It is untitled, although I think it will be something like ‘Me in pieces’”, stating that “It is a post-separation piece” and that her paintings “always relate to what is going on in my life as well as what is around me”.
Figure 8. Angela Chauvin, Untitled work in progress (detail), 2022, charcoal and oil on linen, 120x240cm. Photo by Zo Gay
Figure 9. Angela Chauvin, Untitled work in progress (detail), 2022, charcoal and oil on linen, 120x240cm.Photo by Zo Gay
Angela reflects that she grew up in the country, spending much time in the forest, and acknowledges that “nature” and the “non-human’ world” are a “safe space” for her which has significantly influenced the “post-separation” piece. Considered part of her healing process, the painting has enabled her to connect with the bush during a difficult time when she is committed to being city-bound.
When asked if creating the piece has been a cathartic process and conduit for her emotional health and well being, Angela replies, “That’s all my art has ever been”.
Influenced by artists including Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, Angela describes her creative themes as Australian Gothic, a moody melancholy whereby she endeavours to connect with the unspoken and “in betweens” along with the unrepresented and misrepresented fissures of life, with a primary focus on social injustice and contributing to the discourse of post-colonialism through her work.
Figure 10. Nick Cave and Warren Ellis (The Scotsman 2021)
Keywords
Studio 1, Novice, Expert, Dialogue
Bibliography
Chauvin, Angela. 2016. EmptyFull. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
———. 2017. Studio Things. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
———. 2018. The Way Out. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
———. 2019. Blue Print Room. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
———. 2019. Green Tablescape. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
———. 2019. Pink Pigeons on Brunswick. Online image. https://stockroomspace.com/angela-chauvin-exhibitions.
Gay, Zo. 2022. Conversation with Angela Chauvin.
The Scotsman. 2021. Nick Cave And Warren Ellis. Online image. https://www.scotsman.com/whats-on/arts-and-entertainment/music-review-nick-cave-warren-ellis-playhouse-edinburgh-3391472.