I hadn't come across Senbergs before, and this extensive retrospective of his work was a reminder of art's endless abundance, as a whole (one never more than scratches the surface of all that's out there) and in individual works (likewise, for any particular artwork, never mind artist, movement, etc), as well as a very pleasurable experience in its own right - discovering and enjoying someone new.
Senbergs was born in the late 30s I think, and the earliest pieces are from the 60s; as the exhibition notes say, the influence of Max Beckmann is visible especially in those dark-hued early-career pieces. I was drawn to the ones a bit later on that were seemingly touched by surrealism (often via screenprinted elements), like "Column and still objects 1" (1968):
By the 1970s, he'd hit a vein of post-industrial cityscapes, devoid of human presence, often playing tricks with perspective, and powerfully symbolic without being explicit as to exactly what was in play with the symbolism ("Garden plan with short path", 1973, was my favourite of these)...it makes sense that he lists Barthelme and Borges as influences.
Come the 80s and there's a series of pieces from a trip to Antarctica (compelling but gaining a lot from their subject, obviously) - like "Mawson" (1987), as in Mawson station:
And man-made structures planted in the wide open spaces of both America (Pennsylvania) and Western Australia, as in "Blue angel of Wittenoom" (1988):
Plus some impressive pastel drawings (the artist quoted as describing "the direct and primitive black mark on a wall" as the "omnipotent" expression of creativity), and then circling back to where it started, via some striking renditions of Black Saturday, with a series of imaginatively cartographic pieces ... capriccio - "an architectural fantasy where buildings and other architectural elements and places come together in imaginary settings" - "Melbourne capriccio 3" (2009):
Senbergs was born in the late 30s I think, and the earliest pieces are from the 60s; as the exhibition notes say, the influence of Max Beckmann is visible especially in those dark-hued early-career pieces. I was drawn to the ones a bit later on that were seemingly touched by surrealism (often via screenprinted elements), like "Column and still objects 1" (1968):
By the 1970s, he'd hit a vein of post-industrial cityscapes, devoid of human presence, often playing tricks with perspective, and powerfully symbolic without being explicit as to exactly what was in play with the symbolism ("Garden plan with short path", 1973, was my favourite of these)...it makes sense that he lists Barthelme and Borges as influences.
Come the 80s and there's a series of pieces from a trip to Antarctica (compelling but gaining a lot from their subject, obviously) - like "Mawson" (1987), as in Mawson station:
And man-made structures planted in the wide open spaces of both America (Pennsylvania) and Western Australia, as in "Blue angel of Wittenoom" (1988):
Plus some impressive pastel drawings (the artist quoted as describing "the direct and primitive black mark on a wall" as the "omnipotent" expression of creativity), and then circling back to where it started, via some striking renditions of Black Saturday, with a series of imaginatively cartographic pieces ... capriccio - "an architectural fantasy where buildings and other architectural elements and places come together in imaginary settings" - "Melbourne capriccio 3" (2009):
