CONCRETE: art design architecture exhibition

CONCRETE: art design architecture is a major exhibition exploring innovative ways that concrete is being used by artists, designers and architects in Australia in the 21st century.

Australian Design Centre is delighted to present this incoming touring exhibition in Sydney produced by partners at Adelaide’s JamFactory. Curated by JamFactory’s Margaret Hancock Davis (Senior Curator) and Brian Parkes (CEO), the exhibition includes 21 artists, designers and architects from across Australia and brings together products, projects and works of art that reflect many of the current preoccupations with concrete within contemporary art, design and architecture in Australia.

Having a history spanning over 3000 years, concrete was first used by Egyptians in the building of the pyramids before the Romans produced what today we call hydraulic cement based concrete, used most dramatically in the Pantheon (completed 128AD). With the fall of the Roman Empire the secrets of concrete were lost, and it was not until the early nineteenth century that, through the development of Portland Cement, modern concrete was born.

It is hard to imagine a world without concrete. A material so ubiquitous we rarely take the opportunity to consider its impact on our lives and its role in the development of modern societies. This exhibition aims to question our preconceptions of concrete and to consider its functional as well as its expressive, poetic and aesthetic dimensions.

The exhibitors represent a broad range of approaches to working with concrete, and the range of work in the exhibition is extensive – from fine, handcrafted jewellery to spectacular buildings. Some of the exhibitors include: the Pritzker award-winning architect Glenn Murcutt and the multiple award-winning architectural firm Candalepas Associates, who have both used concrete to create beautiful places of worship; celebrated designers Adam Goodrum and Alexander Lotersztain who have separately designed striking concrete outdoor furniture; leading visual artists Jamie North, Abdul-Rahman Abdullah and Megan Cope who have each produced thought-provoking sculptural works, and jeweller Inari Kiuru who draws the eye to the intricate detail of concrete’s infinitely varied surface.

FULL LIST OF EXHIBITORS: Abdul-Rahman Abdullah (WA) Adam Goodrum (NSW) Alexander Lotersztain (Qld) Anna Horne (SA), Baldasso Cortese Architects (Vic), Candalepas Associates (NSW), CHEB – Deb Jones and Christine Cholewa (SA) Convic (Vic), Durbach Block Jaggers Architects (NSW) Edition Office (Vic), Elvis Richardson (Vic), Glenn Murcutt (NSW), Kyoko Hashimoto and Guy Keulemans (NSW) Inari Kiuru (Vic), Jamie North (NSW), Megan Cope (Vic), Rhiannon Slatter (Vic), Tom Borgas (SA), Sanne Mestrom (Vic), SMART Design Studio (NSW), WOOD Melbourne (Vic).

CONCRETE is the fourth and final exhibition in JamFactory’s acclaimed art design architecture series and will conclude this significant 10-year project exploring material culture in Australia.

When: 31 January – 18 March 2020
Where: Australian Design Centre, 101 – 115 William Street, Darlinghurst
Explore the website here

CONCRETE: art design architecture is supported by Visions of Australia funding through Australian Government’s Department of Communications and Arts and the South Australian Government through the Department of Skills and Industry.

The Principal Sponsor for CONCRETE: art design architecture is Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia, the peak body for the cement, concrete and quarry industry in Australia.