VISUAL ARTS CLASSROOM:
CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS ART
-LINKS AND RESOURCES-
Danie Mellor
 Daniel Mellor, A SuperNatural landscapeA SuperNatural landscape 2014 Mixed media on paper 205.0 x 153.0 cm |  Danie Mellor, Bayi MinyjirraBayi Minyjirral 2013 Pastel, pencil and wash on Saunders Waterford paper 300.0 x 360.0 cm, 9 panels each 100.0 x 120.0 cm. Reproduced here with the permission of the artist. |  Daniel Mellor, Wild HoneyWild Honey: Balam girnyjal (From the mouth of the dry hollow tree) 2014 Pastel, crayon and pencil on paper 230 x 153 cm. Image reproduced here with the permission of the artist. |
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Selected links:
"I’ve always been concerned with how to engage an audience with the truth behind the work, which ultimately leads to a conversation of history in the country. And, secondly, how cultural knowledge is embedded in the country as well, in a way that is certainly political, but in another sense talks about these broader formal elements of art..." Danie Mellor, 'Exotic Lies Sacred Ties' learning resource. See link below.
A link to the artist's website
This is an excellent resource on the artist from the University of Queensland. It supported the 2014 exhibition Danie Mellor-Exotic Lies, Sacred Ties. This kit includes large colour images, an artist statement and an extended interview between the artist and curator/writer Hetti Perkins. This kit is designed for the National Curriculum but information could easily be adapted/ extended for use in NSW VA classrooms.
Danie Mellor comes out of the blue to exhibit at Edinburgh festival The Australian, August 2014, Michaela Boland.
A detailed article with an interview that covers Mellor's background and interets, reflects on his 2014 show at Scotland's National Museum and also his fascination with Spode dinnerware and its significance in his work.
Danie Mellor's Quest for Consistent Excellence Trouble Mag, 2014. This is an interview and overview of the artist's career with images of some of his ceramic works alongside his mixed media drawings.
Danie Mellor, Layering histories and replicating craft in Indigenous contemporary art. This is an excellent 2011 interview with a great range of images of Danie's sculptures and mixed media works. Mellor also discusses his career highlights and explains the personal and historical ideas that inform his practice.
Our students might not be aware of Spode Pottery. This is a link to the offical Spode site in the U.K. Danie Mellor visited this factory in 1998 and the influence on his work is obvious.
This article has stunning images of Mellor's work and a sophisticated outline of the ideas that inform his practice and might be associated with his exploration of country and landscape. There is also a rich account of the artist's craftsmanship and attention to detail. Zoom in to make it easier to read this PDF.
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Danie Mellor by Jeremy Eccles, Eyeline Contemporary Visual Arts. This is a great artcicle providing an overview of Danie Mellor's career and of the two major shows in 2014 exhibiting his work (QLD Travelling show and Edinburgh Festival). This article outlines several recent works and explores the layers of meaning in Mellor's use of blue, his depiction imaginary worlds and his references to Masonic symbols.
Link to Gallery website with large clear images of selected works, an image of the artist in his studio, CV and profile and links to past exhibitions.
Framing Questions:
Danie Mellor: Exotic Lies Sacred Ties at TarraWarra Museum of Art, 4.34mins. The artist discusses his practice and also this survey exhibition 'Exotic Ties, Sacred Lies' at TarraWarra Museum of Art.
Danie Mellor: Paradise Garden, Michael Reid Gallery, 4.40mins. This 2012 film is useful as students can see close-ups of the artists drawings and also see the scale of Mellor's works, from the very large to the intimate. There is an interview with the artist too.
Danie Mellor presents 'Primordial: SuperNatural BayiMinyjirral', 4.40mins. Assistant Curator Ross Irving interviews acclaimed Australian artist Danie Mellor about Primordial: SuperNaturalBayiMinyjirral, a 2014 major exhibition at National Museum of Scotland curated by Mellor and including new works by the artist.
BBC documentary 'Blue. History of Art in Three Colours' HD, 57mins. This documentary does not cover the work of Danie Mellor but provides an accessible and engaging overview of the history of the colour blue in Visual Arts. "Dr James Fox explores how, in the hands of artists, the colour blue has stirred our emotions, changed the way we behave and even altered the course of history."
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Ask students to use the evidence above to write an outline of Danie Mellor's role as an artist. They might imagine that they are an art dealer writing an outline that potential buyers of his works might read. Students could consider the range of media he works in, the materials he works with, his techniques and actions, the choices he has made, his connections to galleries and institutions, art awards and prizes and his professional profile.
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Consider the significance of the use of a limited colour palette (particularly the blue and white) in Mellor's drawings and mixed media works. You might have a look as a class at the BBC documentary above on the history of the colour blue.
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Use the structural frame (visual language, materials, symbolism, elements of art) and postmodern frame (his use of irony, quotation, juxtaposition and critique of traditional mainstream representations) to explain how Mellor's work's reflect a sense of beauty and wonderment but also critique of Australia's colonial past and associated representations of landscape and history.
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Ask students to account for the ways that Danie Mellor's works take inspiration from his 'mothers country', the Artherton Tablelands in Far North Queensland.
Art making ideas:
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Mellor is known for his references to Spode and willow pattern dinnerware. As a class examine blue and white spode plates and reflect on the conventions of this style. Ask students to create an artwork which uses the postmodern elements of appropriation and juxtaposition. The work might be planned in the art diary. Students might reference the decorative spode style, an incude an intricate border, but could also incorporate contemporary people and objects from their local environment in the scene. Their final designs might be drawn into large circle/oval shapes or you could reference the work of Australian artist Sarah Goffmann and work directly onto paper plates and cups!
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Connect with local Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community members and learn more about the stories and histories of your local area. Use mapping and storytelling to create artworks that reflect on the multiple histories and uses of the area.
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As a class visit a local forest/ bush site. Invite a local Indigenous community member if possible. Sit in the landscape and record the sounds, smells, and textures. Sketch the trees, grasses, and shrubs. Share experiences of the site. Back in the classroom consider using a scanner and Photoshop to manipulate and add to the drawings. Students might consider inserting images of native Australian animals to create a surreal and unexpected scene.
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 Koala Bear |
 Old Map |
 Tree Roots |
 Porcelain Mug |
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 Tropical Plant |