Art Melbourne’s Off The Wall artists

Image by Emily Valentine Bullock ‘Off the Wall’ entrant

ART MELBOURNE ’09 16-19 APRIL 2009

Art Melbourne 09 recently announced the 16 fledgling artists who will exhibit as part of the emerging artist showcase – Off The Wall. Following a national call-out to all unrepresented artists, a panel of art industry experts judged over 200 entries to select these stand-out submissions.

Off The Wall is a major feature of Art Melbourne and is dedicated to the promotion of independent and unrepresented artists. It is an opportunity for the work of undiscovered artists to be viewed by thousands of active art buyers, influential gallery owners, curators, and the 120 exhibiting commercial galleries. “Getting your foot in the door of commercial galleries can be the most difficult step an artist has to take. Off The Wall provides a great opportunity not just to sell work, but also to get noticed by some of Australia’s best galleries, curators and consultants”, commented Cash Brown, Off The Wall Co-ordinator.

This year sees finalists from across the country including South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.  All are highly talented, with a number of the artists using mixed media in their works. Emily Valentine Bullock creates intricate feather-covered figurines of dogs; Alison McDonald creates nature inspired sculpture from plastic juice bottles set against a black background while Daniel Malecki makes large scale installations of everyday objects from acrylic.

Since 2004, Art Melbourne has shown over 200 emerging artists and successfully placed over 75% of them in some of Australia’s most successful art galleries. Past Off The Wall participants value the exposure, artist Gizelle Regan exhibited in Off the Wall at Art Melbourne 2007, and found the experience extremely valuable. “Off The Wall has to be the most positive experience I have had as an artist to date… from the respectful way each individual artist was treated through to the amazing feedback we received from the general public and gallery representatives. I have been hearing the term ‘art incubator’ a lot recently and I think that is exactly what’s been achieved with Off the Wall”, she commented.

The panel of industry experts that selected the artists included Director of Neon Parc Gallery Tristian Koenig, former Off The Wall participant and current PhD candidate at RMIT Elvis Richardson, ACCA Curator Anna MacDonald, artist Tanmaya Bingham and Off The Wall Co-ordinator, Cash Brown.

ART MELBOURNE 09 16 – 19 April 2009. The Royal Exhibition Buildings, Carlton

For further information visit www.artmelbourne09.com.au