Now you see it….

This is the cafe of the Perth Art Gallery.  When you’re sat at a table nursing your coffee you might wonder why people keep looking in your direction and pointing.  Sometimes they get their cameras or phones out and take pictures.  No - they haven’t mistaken you for a celebrity - it’s what’s behind you that they’re interested in.  All you can see are some cups hanging on the wall.  But get up and go over to where they are and you will be astonished.  I’m sure you can see who it is.

There’s an exhibition of year 12 art from all the schools in Perth. It’s simply amazing; confident, mature, thought-provoking and stunningly executed. Each piece of art is accompanied by a written description of what the artist was trying to achieve.  I wish all artists would do that.

Like many 18 year-olds, a lot of the students’ work was overtly political - tacking issues of homelessness, poverty, greed, inequality and the ill-treatment of aboriginal peoples.  But they pulled it off without offending their audience.

The rest of the displays in the gallery by established artists did little for me; much of it I simply didn’t get.  It just didn’t have the ‘wow’ factor that the year 12s did.  I’d love to know what becomes of young artists - do they lose that ‘zing’ as they get older? 

Here’s a link in case you’re interested.