Exhibition celebrates the art of craft this August

Noosa Regional Gallery is set to host USE during August. It’s one of three exhibitions that share a similar theme.

“All three exhibitions take practices traditionally considered as craft, and highlight their relevance in a contemporary art context,” says Gallery Director Michael Brennan.

USE celebrates the work of contemporary jewellery practitioners and metalsmiths and the layers of meaning it contains.

“While these kind of art forms are commonly encountered in retail environments – indeed our own Gallery gift shop is an excellent example of the breadth of practitioners working across the region – it is less common for the ideas and concepts behind the works and their processes to be unpacked,” says Brennan.

“USE demonstrates that jewellery can be aesthetically beautiful and conceptually compelling at the same time.”

USE features the work of 17 Queensland artists including Helen Bird, Elizabeth Shaw and Sunshine Coast local Rebecca Ward.

Curator Lisa Bryan-Brown says regardless of the diversity and motivation of practitioners, their tools remain the common denominator.

The touring exhibition is a creative partnership between the Queensland Chapter of the Jewellers and Metalsmiths Group of Australia Inc. and Museums and Galleries Queensland.

It is part of the Visions regional touring program, an Australian Government program aimed at improving access to cultural material for all Australians.

Also supporting the project is the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland; the Australian Government through its arts funding and advisory body the Australia Council; Liveworm Studio; and the Queensland College of Art, Griffith University.

USE is at Noosa Regional Gallery from August 2 to September 8, 2019. Entry to the Gallery is free. Visit for the website for more information.

29 July 2019