Y3K EXHIBITIONS: 2011

The First & Final Y3K Second (third) Inaugural Melbourne Biennial of International Arts

14 May – 4 June

Opening Saturday 14th May 6-8pm

The Y3K Biennial is a curatorial project developed by Joshua Petherick, James Deutsher, and Christopher L G Hill that features the work of 6 artists from Australia, and 6 artists from elsewhere. It serves as a continuation of both the first, and only, Melbourne Biennial ‘Signs of Life’ (1999), and the second, Y2K artist initiated Biennial (2008), also held in Melbourne. The Y3K Biennial looks at the extension of events and spaces in a lateral and literal sense address the importance of exchange between the Melbourne and Australian contemporary art context with that of our International peers in an open non-formal way, based on the quality of the work and artists participating. With Y3K’s anterior Biennial (the Y2K artist initiated Biennial (2008)) having served as the non-official inaugural Y3K exhibit, the new Y3K Biennial (“title”) will take it’s place as the final exhibition of Y3K’s Melbourne gallery space (2009-2011), positioning the two Biennials as symbolic bookends to the Y3K project.

Carissa Rodriguez (USA)

Tobias Kaspar (Switzerland)

Hany Armanious (Australia)

Piotr Lakomy (Poland)

John Spiteri (Australia)

Natalie Rognsoy (Norway)

Andreas Banderas (Norway)

Katherine Huang (Australia)

Taree McKenzie (Australia)

Ester Partegas (USA)

Tahi Moore (New Zealand)

Mikala Dwyer (Australia)

Michael O’Connell (UK/Australia)

THIS IS THE FINAL PRESENTATION IN THE Y3K EXHIBITION PROGRAM.

Over the last 24 months we have worked with over 99 artists designers and curators to make 48 presentations in Australia and overseas.

Y3K is/was a two-year proposition initiated James Deutsher and Christopher L G Hill, a gallery practice as-an-extension-of an art practice and-in-support-of a wider art and design community in Melbourne and Internationally. Over two-years Y3K exhibited World Food Books, BLESS, Christopher L.G. Hill, Emmeleine deMooij, Jota Castro, Kinga Kielczynska, Melanie Bonaj, fabrics interseason, ffiXXed, Heinz Peter Knes, James Deutsher, Matt Hinkley, Olivia Barrett, Pat Foster, Jen Berean, Rob McKenzie, SIBLING, Slow and Steady Wins the Race, Jon Campbell, LOST Projects, Alex Vivian, Daniel du Bern, Nick Selenitsch, Kain Picken, Next Wave, A Constructed World, Joshua Petherick, Helen Johnson, Bianca Hester, Misha Hollenbach, David Griggs, Sam Kiyoumarsi, Robert Langenegger, Nick Mangan, Matt Griffin, Masato Takasaka, Fiona Connor, Tahi Moore, Ida Ekblad, Art Centre Ongoing, Kit Lee, Kate Newby, Sriwhana Spong, Dylan Statham, Simon Taylor, Sophia Mitchell, Rowan Mcnaught, MM Yu. Ilia Farah Rosli, Marco Fusinato, TATE Modern, Marie Gaultier, Anna Hess, Veronica Kent, Jarrod Rawlins, Keith Al-Hasani, Ruby Lowe, Justin Clemens, Daniel Munn, Simon Denny, Dan Arps, Andrew Barber, Structural Integrity, Marco Fusinato, Rose Nolan, Dan Bell, Kate Smith, Ardi Gunawan, Nikos Pantazopoulos, Ben Tankard, Steve Kado, Virginia Overell, Mateo Tannatt, Sean Peoples, Inri Cristo, Tara Rawlins, Chateau 2F, Oscar Yanez, Hany Armanious, Ash Kilmartin, Lizzy Newman, Juan Davila, Janet Burchill, Jennifer McCarthy, Hao Guo, Pow Martinez, Carissa Rodriguez, Tobias Kaspar, Piotr Lakomy, Natalie Rognsoy, Katherine Huang, Taree McKenzie, Ester Partegas, Mikala Dwyer and John Spiteri and everyone we missed.

Christopher L G Hill and James Deutsher would like to sincerely thank the above artists as well as the following people and organizations for their invaluable support; all of the artists who hade had studios at Y3K, Eugénie Delloye, Yve Deutsher, Uplands Gallery, Warren Taylor, Richard Hill, Sandra Hill, Hamish Hill, Vince Chiodo, Gaye Newton, Bruce Wellington, The Narrows, Ulanda Blair, Sarah Bond, Jeff Khan, Matthew Benjamin, Fayen D’Evie, Adam Cruickshank, Gambia Castle, Harriet Edquest, Hopkinson Cundy, Sari de Mallory, Saskia Schut, Ying Lan Dan, Qianyi Lim, Drew Pettifer, Adam Harding, Anthony Kolber, Yahna Fookes, Catherine Dwyer, Chris Barton, Danny Lacy, Sebastian Moody, Dawn Press, Geordie Miller, Jason Hood, Jono Brener, Dov Brener, Roslyn Oxley9, RMIT design department, Maythorp, Ollie and Holly, Lara Moor, Leah Jackson, Lisa Radford, Lydia Chai, Joint Hassles, Max Delany, Alex Baker, Neon Parc, Siddharta Perez, Xavier Connelly, Fiona Lau, Nozomu Ogawa, Yuki Hirokawa, Rosie Overell, Ash Keating, 3331 Arts Chyoda, Bunyip Trax, Y2K, TCB Art Inc. and everyone we missed.

Love always and forever,

Y3K

Ester Partegas, Wallpaper (gates), 2010, laser photocopy prints, variable dimensions courtesy the artist and Foxy Productions

Taree McKenzie, Untitled, 2011, glass, vinyl, wood, gels

John Spiteri, The Cave Of Hands, 2006, acrylic and enamel on glass with artist’s frame, 56 x 56 x 6cm courtesy the artist and Neon Parc

Michael O'Connell (1898-1976), Women Dancing (fragment), c.1932, hand block-printed linen, courtesy the artist, the RMIT design archive and Seamus O'Connell, gift of Christopher Wood

Michael O'Connell (1898-1976), Women Dancing (fragment), c.1932, hand block-printed linen, courtesy the artist, the RMIT design archive and Seamus O'Connell, gift of Christopher Wood (detail)

Natalie Rognsoy, Untitled, 2011, watercolor on paper

Katherine Huang, Bartering World, 2011, slip cast pigmented porcelain, courtesy the artist and Neon Parc

Hany Armanious, Skinks of NSW, 2010, pigmented polyurethane resin, courtesy the artist and Roslyn Oxley9

Tobias Kaspar, Invitation Photo Series Nr. 2, 2011, digital print on paper

Ester Partegas, Wallpaper (gates), 2010, laser photocopy prints, variable dimensions courtesy the artist and Foxy Productions

Tahi Moore, Blanks can’t gurus, 2011, DVD, courtesy the artist and Hopkinson Cundy

Tahi Moore, Blanks can’t gurus, 2011, DVD, courtesy the artist and Hopkinson Cundy (still)

Ester Partegas, Wallpaper (gates), 2010, laser photocopy prints, variable dimensions courtesy the artist and Foxy Productions

Piotr łakomy, Untitled (self-projection), 2011, chairs, DVD projection

Ester Partegas, Wallpaper (gates), 2010, laser photocopy prints, variable dimensions courtesy the artist and Foxy Productions

Piotr łakomy, Untitled (self-projection), 2011, chairs, DVD projection

Taree McKenzie, Untitled, 2011, glass, vinyl, wood, gels

Mikala Dwyer, IOU, 2009, acrylic, courtesy the artist and Roslyn Oxley9

Ester Partegas, Wallpaper (gates), 2010, laser photocopy prints, variable dimensions courtesy the artist and Foxy Productions

Andreas Banderas, Untitled, 2011, fabric, digital print

SALVATION IN A NEST OF VIPERS: LOSTprojects Manila in Y3K

Salvation in a nest of vipers is about the other side of Manila completely opposed to the photorealist trend, and rising above the picturesque. The artists making up the group exhibition are inclined towards the glut of the city, opening up a space where imagination takes a toll from the substance it springs from. It is in this space where the painters exhaust imagery in a primal and sophisticated visual language, and conjures parallel tableaux of blatant debauchery not very far from actual parades of perversions. Photography in Salvation in a nest of vipers meanwhile are straight shots of underworlds and underbellies, marking a horizon line of recoil and attraction.

About LOSTprojects

LOSTprojects is an alternative art space situated in Industrial Vallery Marikina, off track from cultural strips and commercial districts in Metro Manila. LOSTprojects is dedicated to building a more engaged community of artists, curators and alternative art spaces. It is an expanded platform of exchange primarily among artists in Manila and Australia. Likewise it exists to promote artists, who are involved in its projects, within and beyond these two regions.

Founded by Australian artist David Griggs, who has been based in Manila since early 2009, LOSTprojects was officially established through its successful participation in VOLTA6 (Basel, Switzerland) in June 2010. It was inaugurated on 1 July 2010 with its first resident artist, Pow Martinez. Since then, it has held exhibitions by Martinez, Ben Quilty and recently, Sam Kiyoumarsi.

LOSTprojects is run by David Griggs and independent curator/ art writer Siddharta Perez.

About the artists

David Griggs (b. 1975)

David Griggs was born in Sydney, 1975. He currently lives and works in Manila, Philippines. Griggs known best for his paintings, photography and installation projects works closely with various communities and artists. Creating highly active political humorous projects that have dealt with the incarceration of inmates from Manila City Jail to Halloween festivals with street kids in Santa Mesa.

Griggs’ works have been exhibited in major solo and group exhibitions through-out Australia, South East Asia and Europe. Selected exhibitions include “Exchanging Culture for Flesh” (2006) at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, “Zombie Kiss” (2009) in Uplands Gallery, Melbourne, “Bastards of Misrepresentation: Doing Time on Filipino Time” (2010) in Freies Museum, Berlin and “Inversion of the Ideal” (2010) in Galerie Zimmerman-Kratochwill, Graz, Austria. He was part of the Primavera 2006 in the Museum of Contempoary Art in Sydney and “Fluid Zones”, the 2009 Jakarta Biennale.

Sam Kiyoumarsi (b.1980)

Sam Kiyoumarsi is a photographer mainly influenced by contemprorary practices in sound and visual expression. He started out as an underground musician and later on developed his interest in films, still imagery, paintings, and the visual arts.

Kiyoumarsi was represented by LOSTprojects in Volta6 Basel, Switzerland in 2010 and was featured in the group show “Absolute Winter” in Charlotte Fogh Contemporary, Denmark. He has participated in exhibitions in galleries and alternative art spaces in Manila since 2006 and recently had his solo exhibitions “A History of Bad Ideals” in Mo_space and “Inalienable Dreamless” in LOSTprojects. Kiyoumarsi runs Light and Space, an independent art space in Fairview, Metro Manila, with Pow Martinez.

Robert Langenegger (b. 1983)

Robert Langenegger studied Fine Arts in Kalayaan College and University of the Philippines. He has had six solo exhibition since 2006. His works have been featured in Freies Museum Berlin, MOP Projects Sydney, VOLTA6 in Basel and Goliath Visual Space in Brooklyn. His exhibition “Irish Bull of the mother and child” was shortlisted in the 2008 Ateneo Art Awards. He was also a Finalist in the Sovereign Asian Art Prize in the same year.

Langenegger's works are described to be “phantasmagoric carnivals of hallucinogenic, carnal carnage.” Gritty imagery are juxtaposed with cool, vapid scenery. The themes in oeuvre run from the “psychadelia of current events and world politics [to] art history, colonial reverberations and religion.”

Pow Martinez (b. 1983)

Pow Martinez studied Fine Arts at Kalayaan College and at the University of the Philippines. He has been involved in the local sound art scene aside from his four solo exhibitions in Manila. His works has been featured in exhibitions in Richard Koh Fine Art, Future Prospects, mo_space, Silverlens Lab and Freies Museum, Berlin. His exhibition in West Gallery in 2009 earned him the 2010 Ateneo Art Awards. He is also the first artist to be bestowed the studio grant in LOSTprojects. Martinez runs Light and Space, an independent art space in Fairview, Metro Manila.

Martinez creates multi-media sound installations as well as expressionistic paintings. He often paints figures in a fetishistically naïve style exploring the terrain of man’s inhumanity to man and primitive mythologies in a hard-hitting and overtly humorous way. His music and sound installations reflect the same obsession with the outrageous as his music comes from the tradition of the avant-garde.

MM Yu (b. 1978)

MM Yu received her Bachelor of Fine Arts, Major in Painting, from the University of the Philippines in 2001. The 13 Artists Awards was bestowed unto her in 2009 and the Ateneo Art Award and Common Room Bandung Residency Grant in 2007. She has held solo exhibitions in Metro Manila and her works have been featured in group and survey exhibitions such as “Bastards of Misrepresentation” (2010) in Freies Museum Berlin, “Inversion of the Ideal” (2010) in Galeria Zimmerman-Kratochwill in Graz, Austria, “This and That” (2009) in Triple Base, San Francisco as well as in the travelling exhibitions “CUT09: New Photography from Southeast Asia” (2009) and “Beyond Frame: Philippine Photomedia” (2008)

Austria, Berlin, Kuala Lumpur, San Francisco and Singapore.

Yu's photography-based works embark on an experiment where the photograph embodies both the intentional and accidental, the found and the perceived.