{"id":1951,"date":"2024-12-16T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-15T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.curtin.edu.au\/jcg\/?post_type=exhibitions&p=1951"},"modified":"2025-10-09T14:08:52","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T06:08:52","slug":"fantastic-forms-exhibition","status":"publish","type":"exhibitions","link":"https:\/\/www.curtin.edu.au\/jcg\/exhibitions\/fantastic-forms-exhibition\/","title":{"rendered":"Fantastic Forms"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Colourful, and brimming with shapes that sway, teeter and slump, Fantastic Forms <\/em>celebrates the endless creativity of the human imagination through drawing, ceramics, sculpture and animation.<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

The starting point for Fantastic Forms<\/a><\/em>, a Bundanon touring exhibition, is the expansive selection of multi-hued drawings and curvilinear ceramics by Merric Boyd, collected by his son, Arthur Boyd, which form a cornerstone of the Bundanon Collection. Bringing this lyrical work into conversation with the very different practices of three living Australian artists, Fantastic Forms<\/em> explores the joy of artmaking and its connection to everyday life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boyd\u2019s drawings and ceramics are on tour from the Bundanon Collection and sit in dialogue with new large-scale sculptures by Nabilah Nordin, a series of ceramic figures by Stephen Benwell and stop-motion videos by emerging Bundjalung artist Rubyrose Bancroft. Beginning with Merric Boyd\u2019s idiosyncratic approach to artmaking, Fantastic Forms<\/em> expands from well-known ceramic work into his energetic and playful drawing practice, all of which was underpinned by the spiritual philosophy of love and connection, that ran through his life and work. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Exhibition Details<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Opening Event:<\/strong> 2 October 2025
Exhibition Open: <\/strong>3 October \u2013 7 December 2025
Supported By:<\/strong> National Collecting Institutions Touring and Outreach Program<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The Artists<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rubyrose Bancroft<\/strong> is an emerging Bundjalung artist based in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. Bancroft is a trained ceramist who began experimenting with Plasticine claymation at home during lockdown. Her work in Fantastic Form<\/em>s uses humour and escapism whilst exploring biblical and cosmic themes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his paintings, ceramics and bronzes, Stephen Benwell<\/strong> references and challenges classical forms, presenting fragments of full statues, suggestive of archaeological finds, alongside busts and statues of the male nude. Benwell\u2019s distinct style continues his contemporary perspective on traditions of beauty, and other art-historical influences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Considered Australia\u2019s first studio potter, Merric Boyd<\/strong> began working with clay in 1910 when the medium was not widely used. Alongside pottery, drawing formed the backbone of his practice from an early age. Boyd\u2019s creative philosophy shaped the lives of his five children, Lucy, Arthur, Guy, David and Mary, all of whom became artists in their own rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nabilah Nordin <\/strong>is a Singaporean\/Australian sculptor whose practice \u2018unlearns\u2019 correct methods and techniques to maintain a state of conscious na\u00efvet\u00e9. Interested in material invention, her installations embrace wonky craftwork, playfully celebrating the visceral and anthropomorphic qualities of materials in concert with community engaged performative practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\n\n\t\t\t

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Header image credits: Stephen Benwell, Fantastic Forms<\/em> (installation view), Bundanon, 2023. Photo: Zan Wimberley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gallery image credits: Image 1: Fantastic Forms, 2023, Merric Boyd and Nabilah Nordin. Photo: Zan Wimberley. Image 2: Merric Boyd, Jug, Hut, early settler<\/em>, c1949, ceramic, buff earthenware, wheel-thrown, brown engobe, incised, cream and green colours under clear glaze. Bundanon Collection. Photo: June Andersen. Image 3: Bundanon Fantastic Forms, 2023, Merric Boyd. Photo: Zan Wimberley. Image 4: Merric Boyd, Trees and post-and-rail fence, date unknown, pencil and coloured pencil on paper. Bundanon Collection. Photo: Rob Little. Image 5: Stephen Benwell, Red<\/em>, Stocking and Dancer <\/em>2022, earthenware with porcelain slip, dimensions variable. Courtesy of the artist and LON Gallery. Photo: Tim Gresham.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fantastic Forms is a Bundanon touring exhibition<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The exhibition is supported by the National Collecting Institutions Touring and Outreach Program, an Australian Government program aiming to improve access to the national collections for all Australians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exhibition room guide<\/h5>\n\n\n\n