Bringing together works from the UQ Collection and beyond, this exhibition is attentive to the agency of materials and to the vibrancy of matter.
The artists included in Vibrant Matter have co-produced their work with material components of drawing, sculpture, and sound art. Welcoming the active participation of these more-than-human materials and beings as co-creators, the works move away from notions of the singular intention of authorship. Artistic control over the final outcome is balanced with chance, accident, and collaboration with the more-than-human as a creative driver: the gravitational force of volcanic rocks; the will of a snake; and the sonic potential of consumer detritus from the urban world. By establishing the parameters for the unexpected to occur and embracing the performative nature of materials, Jacobs, Manning, and Slee animate the drama of our tumultuous ecological present: a time when matter means more than ever before.
Artists: Simone Slee, Susan Jacobs, and Ross Manning.
Image: Simone Slee, Rocks holding up #4 2019, red scoria rock and glass. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2019. Courtesy of the artist and Sarah Scout Presents, Naarm/Melbourne. Photo: Christo Crocker.
