north east regional extra | 8 - 14 August, 2018
nemedia.com.au
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8 - 14 August, 2018 ◆ EXPLORING ART: Alan Phillips surrounded by artwork in his Beechworth studio. PHOTO: Coral Cooksley
By KYLIE WILSON
WHEREVER he is in the world, artist Alan Phillips lives by the credo of Carpe Diem, or “seizing the day”. Recording the world around him is one way he does this, and creating art around some of the most recognisable faces and events of our time is another. A selection of his collage work from the past four decades forms an exhibition opening in September at the Old Beechworth Gaol, and Alan said he chose the medium of collage to explore the Carpe Diem concept because it “seizes the eye and the mind”. He said collages inspire deeper contemplation in the viewer. “It is direct and immediate, sometimes shocking and unsettling our perspectives,” Alan said. “It invites us to shed the casual glance and to take time to observe, to look more deeply at what those words and images together might suggest, might savour, might subvert. “To make collage, you can use any material; you don’t need expensive art media. “In many cases, a pair of scissors, a glue pot and a surface are all you need. “However, the rules of art are still required – balance, shape, texture, line and a sense of design.” Alan’s bookshelves are full of colourful and jam packed visual diaries that he has worked on throughout his life, with reflections on sights and places spanning the globe.
Seizing inspiration
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