Mel O'Callaghan
Mel O'Callaghan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1975 (age 48–49) Sydney, Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Alma mater | University of Sydney University of New South Wales, |
| Known for |
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Mel O'Callaghan (born 1975) is an Australian-born contemporary artist who works in video, performance, sculpture, installation, and painting. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions around the world and received a number of awards for her artistic practice, and her work is held in a various collections in Australia and France.
Early life and education[edit]
O'Callaghan was born in Sydney, Australia in 1975.[1][2] She attained a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours from the Sydney College of Arts, University of Sydney, and a Masters of Fine Arts in Research from the College of Fine Arts (COFA), University of New South Wales, and a Bachelor of Science Architecture from the University of Sydney.[3]
Practice[edit]
She is interested in human behaviour, psychology, and transformative states. [1][4] Her work is experiential and looks at the human condition and ritual.[2]
O'Callaghan lives and works in Paris, France and Sydney, Australia.[1][2][5] She and her husband, Clemens Habicht, founded the Parisian art gallery Galerie Allen in 2013.[6]
Exhibitions[edit]
O'Callaghan has been in solo and group exhibitions around the world and received a number of awards for her artistic practice.[2][5][7][8][3]
Centre of the Centre[edit]
Centre of the Centre was O'Callaghan's first large scale exhibition in an Australian public institution.[5] Combining a large-scale video, sculptural installations, and regular performances, the show explored the origins of life and regeneration [2][5][7][9]
The video was a result of multiple cross-disciplinary collaborations, including one with Daniel Fornari from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts.[4] It is 20 minutes long, was projected 7 metres wide, and includes underwater shots of thermal vents in the Pacific Ocean as well as the coco worm.[4] The performances involved breath-induced trances and took place around the exhibition's glass and metal sculptures.[4]
Centre of the Centre was commissioned by Le Confort Moderne, Poitiers; Artspace, Sydney; and UQ Art Museum, Brisbane.[4] It premiered at the former in June 2019 and will be on show at the latter until January 2021, after which it will tour various other Australian venues.[4]
Major solo exhibitions[edit]
O'Callaghan has had solo exhibitions in many parts of the world, including Australia, France, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the USA.[citation needed]
- 2019: Centre of the Centre, Artspace, Sydney, Australia
- 2018: Primary/Secondary Score, Barangaroo et Carriageworks, Sydney, Australia[10]
- 2017: Mel O'Callaghan: Ensemble, National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) Melbourne, Australia, Kronenberg Wright, Sydney, Australia[11]
- 2017: Dangerous on-the-way, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France[12]
- 2004: The Fall, Salles E.M. Sandoz M. David Weill, Cité internationale des arts, Paris, France
- 2003: In the Half Light, 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art, Sydney, Australia
- 2002: The Fly and the Mountain, Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), Sydney, Australia
Major group exhibitions[edit]
O'Callaghan has been involved in group exhibitions in Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, and the UK.
- 2019: Yo-Chang Art Museum, National Taiwan University of Arts
- 2018: 200 Videos, Museo D'Art Contemporanea di Roma, Italy
- 2018: International Film Festival Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2016: L'art de la re'volte (The Art of Revolt), Hors-Pistes, Centre Pompidou, Malaga, Spain
- 2015: Nature/Revelation, The Ian Potter Museum, National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), Melbourne, Australia
- 2014: 19th Biennale of Sydney, You Imagine What You Desire, Sydney, Australia
- 2010: Dying in Spite of the Miraculous, Gurtrude Contemporary art Space and Melbourne International Arts Festival, Melbourne, Australia
- 2010: La Main Numerique, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei, Taiwan
- 2006: Videoformes, Prix de la Creation Video, Clermont Ferrand, France
- 2005: National Sculpture Prize, National Gallery of Australia (NGA), Canberra, Australia
- 2005 Videobrasil 05 15º, Internacional Video Art Biennale, São Paulo, Brazil
- 2003: Printroom, Gertrude Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Australia
- 2001: Helen Lempriere Travelling Art Award, Artspace, Sydney, Australia
Major grants, awards, residencies[edit]
- 2019: Aide de Projet, Fondation National des Arts Graphiques et Plastiques (FNAGP)
- 2017: Finalist, Prix Meurice pour l'art contemporain, France
- 2017: Fondation National des Arts Graphiques et Plastiques (FNAGP), Artist Studio, Nogent-sur-Marne, France
- 2017: Cité internationale des arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2016: Cité internationale des arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2015: Recipient, Prix SAM pour l'Art Contemporain, France
- 2014: Nominated for the Bernd Lohaus Prize, Belgium
- 2014: Finalist, Kaldor Public Arts Projects, Sydney, Australia
- 2011: Cité Internationale des Arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2007: Cité Internationale des Arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2005: Cité Internationale des Arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2005: National Sculpture Prize, Finalist, National Gallery of Australia (NGA), Australia
- 2005: Australian Film Commission, Australia
- 2004: Cité International des Arts, Artist Residency, Paris, France
- 2001: Centre for Contemporary Art, Artist Residency, Prague, Czech Republic
- 2001: Finalist, Helen Lempriere Travelling Art Award
Collections[edit]
O'Callaghan's work is held in a various collections in Australia and France.
- Ensemble (2013) at the National Gallery of Victoria,[13] Melbourne, Australia
- Framework (2014) at FRAC Bretagne, Rennes, France[14]
- Monash University Museum of Modern Art (MUMA), Australia
- Artbank, Australian Government Art Collection, Australia
- Attorney General's Department, Australian Government
- Musee National d'Art Moderne/Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Mel O'Callaghan | NGV". www.ngv.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ a b c d e "Mel O'Callaghan: Centre of the Centre". art-museum.uq.edu.au. 18 October 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ a b Galerie Allen. "Mel O'Callaghan: Bio". www.galerieallen.com. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f Lacroix, A. (2020). "Room to Exhale: Mel O'Callaghan's 'Centre of the Centre'". Art Monthly Australia. 324: 72 – via ProQuest.
- ^ a b c d NSW, Museums & Galleries. "Mel O'Callaghan Centre of the Centre". MGNSW. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ Hancock, C (2016). "Centre and Periphery: Establishing Galerie Allen in Paris". Art Monthly Australasia. 295: 21–23 – via Informit.
- ^ a b Digital, Atlas. "Centre of the Centre | Mel O'Callaghan". ArtSpace. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ "Mel O'Callaghan: Centre of the Centre | NETS". netsaustralia.org.au. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ NSW, Museums & Galleries. "Mel O'Callaghan Centre of the Centre". MGNSW. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
- ^ "Mel O'Callaghan — Primary/ Secondary Score". www.melocallaghan.com. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
- ^ "Mel O'Callaghan | NGV". www.ngv.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
- ^ "Mel O'Callaghan — Dangerous on-the-way". www.melocallaghan.com. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
- ^ Ensemble (2013) at National Gallery of Victoria
- ^ Framework (2014) at FRAC Bretagne
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