Reconciled Rejections Press Release
30 October 2010
PRESS RELEASE
Reconciled Rejections Exhibition
Cheralyn Darcey
environmental artist
Opening Night: 6 - 8pm Thursday 4th November 2010
To be opened by author and witch Lucy Cavendish
Studio 4, Complete Framing 410 Pittwater Road, North Manly
Exotic assemblage birds, Mexican nicho inspired nests in shoes
and exquisite collaged found feathers and other treasures are the
subjects of Northern Beaches’ environmental sculptor Cheralyn Darcey’s first solo exhibition.
After 18 exhibitions in 2 years as an invited artist, Darcey’s Reconciled Rejections,
is to be held at Studio 4, Complete Framing Gallery, 410 Pittwater Road,
North Manly, from 4 to 30 November 2010.
It was living in San Diego, California for 3 years with its close proximity to Mexico
that Darcey found she had an affinity with Mexico’s vibrant art and culture and
she skilfully incorporates these elements through the pieces in this exhibition.
Originally working on canvas in mixed media, Darcey has found her greatest passion
is with assemblage sculpture, her breakthrough being when she introduced hand sculpted
elements combined with found objects.
Darcey’s work is intricate, detailed and bold. Each piece is lovingly and
thoughtfully formed from found objects with every tiny piece having its own story
to tell – from either its history or its original purpose. It is this attention to detail that
makes her work a joy to observe again and again, with greater pleasure coming from each further viewing.
“My hope is that by bringing together broken, discarded and found objects and creating
something beautiful, that I invite you to look a little deeper… at everything. Then to look again”
Darcey says.
The central concept behind this exhibition is birds and our environment.
Each larger piece, depicting a native bird with humanised hands, holding or offering
a special object invites the viewer to question their own place in our environment.
These bird sculptures are asking us in a quiet and discreet but powerful way to look
beyond our own fragile and selfish place in the world and to consider what our
actions do to affect the native wildlife around us. They are not pleading but they
are introducing themselves into our psyche on a level that is hard to ignore.
One of the larger pieces is a human sized Satin Bowerbird bower. Darcey is inviting
members of the public to bring a blue found treasure to place within the bower
during the course of the exhibition.
A Gold coin donation may also be made during the exhibition to support
Manly Environment Centre’s “Little Penguin Project”
Darcey was a finalist in this year’s Warringah Art Prize and is also a
finalist in the Sydney Fringe Festival Under the Blue Moon Art Prize.
Reconciled Rejections is to be opened by the inspirational author and witch Lucy Cavendish.
www.cheralyndarcey.com