‘Reflecting about the last few years of my practise, I realised that the perspective to which I’m constantly drawn is near and intimate. Each artwork explores one small aspect of the natural world. Within this smallness, I am trying to convey something of bigness too; the universal contained within the particular, along with the presence of beauty and mystery.’ – Jennifer Keeler-Milne
An exquisite collection of nature-inspired paintings, drawings and sculpture by Jennifer Keeler-Milne will soon be exhibited in her solo exhibition
‘Close Focus’ at Grafton Regional Gallery, from 17 February – 28 April.
‘Close Focus’ explores Jennifer Keeler-Milne’s fascination with documenting what is near and intimate. Each artwork in this exhibition explores one small aspect of nature. From the whisp of feathers repeated a hundred-fold, to the flower garden of her family home, Keeler-Milne’s subjects convey a sense of the universal contained within the minutiae, the enduring presence of beauty and mystery, and the fragile state of our natural world.
For further information, visit Grafton Regional Gallery
Image above: Jennifer Keeler-Milne at her artist residency in Bali, Indonesia.
Jennifer Keeler-Milne has recently undertaken a residency as part of the DESA Artist-In-Residence Program in Ubud, Bali. This program supports artists from a diverse range of practices, providing time and space to explore and experiment with their making processes. Keeler-Milne has taken inspiration from the plants of the region and created ink drawings of the local fauna.
Luckily I am in the villa’s garden are a selection of plants and I quickly found some skeletonise elk horn leaves that I have found to be a great subject for drawing. I continue working on these each day while also looking further afield during walks.
Keeler-Milne has also continued her study of local fauna through photographing flowers with a macro lens – a process she has undertaken for a number of years. These images will inform a series of oil paintings by the artist.Macro lens image, Jennifer Keeler-Milne
paintings in progress in Jennifer’s Newtown studio
Image above: Jennifer Keeler-Milne Rainforest 2022 oil on linen, polyptych, 41 x 217 cm
Congratulations to Jennifer Keeler-Milne and Paul S. Miller, who have been selected as finalists in the 2023 Paddington Art Prize.
The Paddington Art Prize is a National acquisitive prize, awarded annually for a painting inspired by the Australian landscape. The prize encourages the interpretation of the landscape as a significant contemporary genre, its long tradition in Australian painting as a key contributor to our national ethos, and is a positive initiative in private patronage of the arts in Australia.
Opening Night and Prize Presentation:
Thursday 12 October 6pm – 8pm
Cooee Art Leven Gallery
17 Thurlow St, Redfern NSW
View the online Exhibition of Finalists via the Paddington Art Prize website here.
Image above: Paul S. Miller Highland Pool on the Way to Bowral egg tempera on panel 120 x 120 cm
Image above: Mary Tonkin The shimmer of Spring’s mellowing, Kalorama 2022-23 oil on linen 183 x 248 cm. Photographed by Matthew Stanton.
Congratulations to Graeme Drendel, Paul S. Miller, Jennifer Keeler-Milne, Glenn Morgan, Rodney Pople, Jenny Rodgerson, and Mary Tonkin, whose works are included in the 2023 Salon des Refusés at S.H. Ervin Gallery.
The Salon des Refusés is the S.H. Ervin Gallery’s ‘alternative’ selection from works entered into the annual Archibald Prize for portraiture and Wynne Prize for landscape painting and figure sculpture. Initiated in 1992, this exhibition responds to the large number of works entered into the Archibald Prize, held at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, which were not selected for display in the official exhibition.
Each year, the panel is invited to go behind the scenes of the judging process for the Archibald and Wynne Prizes to select an exhibition from the many hundreds of works entered in both prizes but not chosen for the official award exhibition.
Congratulations to our represented artists who were included in this year’s Salon des Refusés for the following works:
Mary Tonkin – The shimmer of Spring’s mellowing, Kalorama
Graeme Drendel – Portrait of Hertha (Hertha Kluge-Pott, artist)
Paul S. Miller – Cut to the Bone (self-portrait)
Glenn Morgan – The talented photographer Mr Rod McNicol (photographer)
Rodney Pople – FF descending a staircase (Felicity Fenner, curator)
Jenny Rodgerson – Self Portrait – Stumble
Jennifer Keeler-Milne – Golden Beech
The Archibald Prize is one of Australia’s most well-known and respected awards which attracts hundreds of entries each year. The Salon des Refusés has similarly established an excellent reputation rivalling the selections in the ‘official’ exhibition, with works selected for quality, diversity, humour and experimentation, and which examine contemporary art practices, different approaches to portraiture and responses to the landscape.
2023 Salon des Refuses
National Trust S.H. Ervin Gallery
Watson Road, Millers Point (The Rocks), Sydney
6 May – 23 July 2023
Of her work The shimmer of Spring’s mellowing, Kalorama, (pictured at top) Mary Tonkin says: “Made in a tree fern gully, this painting began in the first glorious trumpet blast of Spring, when the ferns were plump, vertical and verdant. Then it rained, and rained and rained. The painting continued, between new creeks, and into high Summer as the ferns sagged and shrivelled. It felt as though I was painting with a new awareness of the frailty and brevity of life, the shimmer of its Being.”
Graeme Drendel Portrait of Hertha (Hertha Kluge-Pott, artist) oil on canvas 30 x 26 cm.
“Yesterday I had the pleasure of painting and talking with Hertha Kluge-Pott, brilliant printmaker and mentor to so many students over her long life.” – Graeme Drendel
Paul S. Miller – Cut to the Bone (self-portrait) 2023 dry brush watercolour and pencil on paper 102 x 132 cm.
Paul S. Miller’s unique visual language is utterly uncontrived and unobtrusive, his works are profoundly relatable and inspire a poignant emotional response.
Glenn Morgan The talented photographer Mr Rod McNicol (photographer) acrylic on board 59 x 121 cm.
Glenn Morgan’s sense of humour, integrity and masterful skill as a storyteller are always present in his works. The honesty and openness in his bright, bustling sculptures immediately engage the viewer and draw us in for a closer look.
Jenny Rodgerson Self Portrait – Stumble oil on linen 107 x 168 cm.
Jenny Rodgerson’s figurative paintings are powerful. They embody both a stillness and a potent sense of inhabited presence. In her distinctive self-portraits, the contrast between nuanced light and shade combines with a bold sense of colour to arrive at an arresting resolve that captures the essence, or what Wittgenstein would call, the “whatness” of the subject.
Jennifer Keeler-Milne Golden Beech (Mt Wilson) 2023 oil on linen canvas 76 x 184 cm.
“Golden Beech (Mt Wilson) is a painted response to the overwhelming beauty of the autumn foliage I witnessed last May when I spent a month as artist-in-residence in the Blue Mountains village of Mt Wilson. Beach trees lined many of the streets and captivated my imagination as they literally shone out!” – Jennifer Keeler-Milne
Rodney Pople FF descending a staircase (Felicity Fenner, curator) oil on linen 207 x 141 cm.
Rodney Pople is an interdisciplinary artist that works across various mediums such as painting, photography and sculpture. Pople is a multi-award winning artist who received the 2016 Paddington Art Prize, the 2012 Glover Prize, 2014 Fishers Ghost Prize, 2009 NSW Parliament Art Prize and 2008 Sulman Prize. He was recently a finalist in the Gallipoli Art Prize, the Muswellbrook Art Prize and the Glover Prize in 2020, as well as the 65th Blake Prize and the Mosman Art Prize in 2018, and has been selected for the Archibald and Wynne Prize over 12 times since 2000.
Image above: Golden Wattle 2022 oil on canvas 92 x 198 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
See Jennifer Keeler-Milne‘s current exhibition at the Bank of America in a video filmed by Simon Hewson and shared by 3:33 Art Projects.
Meadow 2022 oil on linen canvas 61 x 102 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Several works by Jennifer Keeler-Milne are currently being exhibited at the Bank of America Sydney office in an exhibition curated by 3:33 Art Projects as part of its ongoing ‘Art of Connecting’ project. This exhibition demonstrates the diversity of Keeler-Milne’s artistic practice both thematically and materially.
Gum blossoms (Corymbia ficifolia) 2022 92 x 198 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Keeler-Milne’s work focuses on the beauty of nature in its many forms as she transforms blossoms, plants, clouds and marine life into objects of desire. Through direct observation of the natural world, she creates works which both records what she sees and communicates her emotional experiences with these objects and the surrounding environment.
Jennifer Keeler-Milne
Bank of America, Art of Connecting
Governor Phillip Tower, 1 Farrer Place, Sydney NSW 2000
September 2022 – March 2023
Viewing by appointment only.
Image above: Gum blossoms (Corymbia ficifolia) 2022 92 x 198 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
A series of works by Jennifer Keeler-Milne is currently being exhibited at the Bank of America Sydney office, curated by 3:33 Art Projects as part of the ongoing ‘Art of Connecting’ project. This exhibition demonstrates the diversity of Keeler-Milne’s artistic practice both thematically and materially. The exhibition has been accompanied with a thoughtful essay written by Jane Watters, Director of S.H. Ervin Gallery.
Golden Wattle 2022 oil on canvas 92 x198 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
“The work of Jennifer Keeler-Milne focuses on the beauty of nature in its many forms as she transforms blossoms, plants, clouds and marine life into objects of desire. The natural world has engaged and provided source material for the artist through direct observation however it’s not merely about recording what is seen, it’s about creating and sharing the experience of what she feels in the works.” – Jane Watters
Sea sponge # 7 2012 charcoal on paper 57 x 60 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Shimmering lights Venice #4 2012 oil on linen canvas 92 x 122 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
“The English Romantic poet Keats once said that ‘beauty is truth and truth is beauty’ and the works of Jennifer Keeler-Milne embody this with sensitivity and sophistication that give her work an aesthetic dimension in which even the most commonplace transcends into an image of great beauty.” – Jane Watters
Read the full essay on Keeler-Milne’s website.
Jennifer Keeler-Milne
Bank of America Art of Connecting, Sydney
Governor Phillip Tower, 1 Farrer Pl, Sydney NSW 2000
September 2022 – March 2023
Viewing by appointment only.
Meadow 2022 oil on linen canvas 61 x 102 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Above image: Vanity Fair UK July / August Cover 2022 and ‘The Drawing Board’ Feature
Artist Jennifer Keeler-Milne has been featured in the July / August issue of Vanity Fair UK.
‘The Drawing Board’ features a selective group of internationally renowned artists and craftsmen who specialise in their creative practices.
Jennifer is best known for her sumptuous landscape oil paintings and large-scale charcoal drawings, she draws on traditional oil painting techniques to create striking contemporary works. The artist has recently returned to Sydney from a month long artist in residency program at Mount Wilson, NSW which has inspired an array of new works.
Jennifer Keeler-Milne Wattle 2020 oil on linen 71 x 76cm
Click here to read more about Jennifer Keeler-Milne and see available works.