Ken Unsworth Survey

Ken Unsworth is remarkable in being one of Australia�s most challenging Avant-garde artists and at the same time one of the most popular artists of his generation.

His art falls into two main groups, Formal sculptures that take the appearance of Minimalism without being in any way reductive, and expressive Symbolist performances and installations.  Neither of these apparently contradictory positions suggest popular accessibility and yet the humanity and generosity of Unsworth�s invention transcends these difficulties 

Ken has represented Australia at many international exhibitions including Venice, Paris, Istanbul and Sydney Biennales over the last 20 years.  He has made some of his most ambitious pieces for such events but the works are often consigned to oblivion after the exhibition since they require a context for their installation which this exhibition finally provides.  In the process of installing the works we will ensure that they outlive the artist by making detailed instructions and documentation of their fabrication and installation.

The exhibition will include over ten major installations, many maquettes and drawings for public sculptures, relief works which Unsworth thinks of as compressed installations and large format photographs of performances.   This selection will demonstrate the boundless inventiveness and generosity of spirit of one of Australia�s outstanding treasures.

Several of the installations have never been realised before and have existed as drawings and notes in the artists studio.  Unsworth is constantly creating new ideas and calls curators to his studio regularly to show the latest fifty or so concepts.  Hundreds of these ideas are worthy of being realised as major public monuments or festival events.

A clue to His popularity may lie in the language he uses when describing works he plans to produce.  He constantly uses the word beautiful.  I would make a beautiful frame for this I would use beautiful fabric, I want this to be a beautiful sound.  When he describes several preserved butterflies actually opening and closing their wings electronically you may be doubtful of the reality of the project but He will deliver!  Art seldom delivers magic any more but Unsworth nearly always does.

Beauty and delirium fade into melancholia and back into laughter.  He is able to make you cry and laugh at the same time.  Unsworth has lived and suffered as much as most of us so that his art is able to reflect our own deepest fears joys and secrets.