The Selby has created a cult of lifting the curtain on our creative heros with respect and his own level of creative genius. We've come to cherish and crave these windows into the ivory towers and private domains of all levels of artistic celebrities.
Documenting and revealing private creative realms has also been the journey of photographer Paul Barbera, who's book
"Where They Create" is being launched soon. In conjunction with the release of this publication a celebratory exhibition is coming together under the banner of "Where & What". Local and international contributors ranging from Alpha60, Monster Children, Lucy Mcrae, Paul Davies and more take part in 'Where & What' to support Paul Barbera's vision of capturing the process of creation.
The exhibition aims to fuse a dialogue between the subject, the photographer and also those who take pleasure looking on all within the CBD hub of The Galeries.
Paul Davies is a Sydney based painter working out of a light-filled space in Surry Hills. He is also one of the lucky and intriguing subjects of Paul Barbera's mission. He talks to us about his studio-life and his part in this exhibition. And then take a tour of Paul's studio via the lens of Mr Barbera.
Where do you create?
The painting part of my process happens in my studio at The China Heights collective in Surry Hills however I take lots of photos and make sketches of places while on research trips both in Australia and overseas.
What are you working on at the moment?
I have an upcoming exhibition with Tim Olsen opening in Melbourne at the Guy Abrahams Gallery in October which I am really looking forward to as it will be my first solo show there.
Do you think that seeing your space sheds light and added meaning to your work?
I enjoy visiting artist’s studios and try to do it as much as possible. Seeing a studio exposes a lot of the periphery information that goes into making artwork and I enjoy getting a sense of where some of the inspiration has comes from.
What do you love about the photos that Paul took of your space?
Paul’s work is very personable. The photos are subtle and express elements to the studio that I see every day but had not taken notice of. While he was shooting the space I felt like we were just having a conversation and it was great to look back on the shots and see what he thought was interesting about the space.
What unusual things happen in your studio?
We constantly have photo shoots in the gallery part of our studio, so there always seems to be something going on there, also because everyone at China Heights has a different creative background you are exposed to a variety of different ways of creating things.
What do you love and cherish about your space?
The natural light, the people and the mix of different disciplines – we have artists, graphic and fashion designers and a magazine head office.
What do you think the attraction is to seeing inside people's spaces?
The studio is a private space for creating and it’s exciting to visit a place like that because work is often half finished which reveals a lot about the process of the artwork.
Other studios are great to visit as they reveal aspects to the work, which you don’t normally get to see. It’s exciting to see where the artists creates there work because that helps the viewer understand more about the finished product.
Where & What
The Galeries
500 George St
Sydney, 2000
25 July - 12 August 2011