News

HUGO MICHELL GALLERY AT MELBOURNE ART FAIR
19
Feb

HUGO MICHELL GALLERY AT MELBOURNE ART FAIR

Hugo Michell Gallery are thrilled to return to Melbourne Art Fair 2025, presenting the work of two early career South Australian artists; Sam Gold and Zaachariaha Fielding, and Paul Yore as part of BEYOND 2025.


Sam Gold, Mmm I like your flow, humble little flow, 2025Stoneware porcelain and enamel, 102 x 36 x 11 cm irreg. Photography by Connor Patterson.

Sam Gold is an emerging ceramicist, who pushes the structural and conceptual capacity of clay. As objects, they materialise a kinship between Gold’s physical body, their psychological and emotional self, and the clay body, allowing Gold to explore states of futility, failure, resilience and grit, porousness yet inscrutability.


Zaachariaha Fielding, Untitled (672-24AS), 2024-25, acrylic and mixed media on Belgian linen, 199 x 294 cm, photography by Sam Roberts

Zaachariaha Fielding is a multi-disciplinary artist who hails from Mimili community on the APY Lands in far north South Australia. Fielding comes from a long line of multi-disciplinary artists and after a successful music career over the last decade, he now explores the visual language of his culture through painting.

Paul Yore’s installation ‘FUCK ME DEAD’, a vibrantly mosaiced hearse, upcycled and modified from an iconic Australian car, the ’70s Ford Fairlane, will be presented as part of Melbourne Art Fair’s 2025 BEYOND sector, curated by Anna Briers, Curator, Len Lye & Contemporary Art, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery (Aotearoa), in collaboration with STATION.

Paul Yore, Fuck Me Dead (installation view, Carriageworks), 2022, mixed media assemblage comprising funeral hearse, found objects, glass, shells, LED lights, acrylic paint and plastic flooring, 592.5 x 379 x 149 cm

Melbourne Art Fair will be open from 20–23 February 2025 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Pictured (Top): Pictured: Zaachariaha Fielding, Untitled (671-24AS), 2024, acrylic and mixed media on Belgian linen, 166 x 151 cm, photography by Sam Roberts

 

Hugo Michell Gallery Open: Fiona McMonagle + Lucas Grogan
06
Feb

Hugo Michell Gallery Open: Fiona McMonagle + Lucas Grogan

Please join us for the launch of Fiona McMonagle’s ‘Eve’ and Lucas Grogan's ‘A Travel Guide’ at Hugo Michell Gallery on Thursday 6th February, 6-8pm.

Fiona McMonagle
Eve

Throughout history, women have been held to unreasonably high moral standards, with their actions scrutinised and vilified. Cast as scapegoats for society’s problems, this pattern dates back to foundational myths like Eve’s story, which framed her as the cause of humanity’s suffering. The French phrase “Cherchez la femme” embodies this mindset, implying that women are naturally disruptive, tempting, or at fault, perpetuating harmful stereotypes and scapegoating.
McMonagle’s new body of work, Eve, explores these dynamics, depicting women’s faces boldly and unapologetically, inspired by the confrontational format of mugshots.

Lucas Grogan
A Travel Guide

“Everywhere you go, there you are. But time and experience changes who you are and where you want to go next,” shares Grogan about his upcoming exhibition.
‘A Travel Guide’ is an exploration of time, labour, and experience. Two expansive quilts form a library of icons; symbols that have multiple different interpretations based the individual’s life experiences, cultures, and perspectives. Rotating sculptures of travel signposts point toward esoteric and existential places, both real and imagined.
 
Lucas Grogan, A Guide (with yellow tailed black cocktaoos), 2025, wood, polymer, acrylic, and motor, 85 x 25 x 25 cm 
Hugo Michell Gallery are proud to partner with Bird in Hand Winery for this opening event.
Please join us in celebrating the launch of these two exhibitions!
Hugo Michell Gallery acknowledges the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region, and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.
2025 Exhibition Program Announced
21
Jan

2025 Exhibition Program Announced

We are delighted to share our full 2025 exhibition program, please reach out to register your interest in any upcoming exhibitions. 

6 February – 8 March
Fiona McMonagle | Lucas Grogan

19 February – 23 February
MELBOURNE ART FAIR
Zaachariaha Fielding | Sam Gold | Paul Yore

13 March – 5 April
Christopher Zanko | Janet Laurence

10 April – 10 May
Richard Lewer | James Dodd

15 May – 14 June
Tony Garifalakis 

19 June – 19 July
Zaachariaha Fielding | Daniel To + Emma Aiston

24 July – 16 August 
Clara Adolphs | Drew Spangenberg

10 September – 14 September
SYDNEY CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR

25 September – 25 October
Buku Art Centre 

30 October – 29 November
Georgia Spain | Kate Mitchell

Fiona Roberts featured on front cover of Art Collector Magazine
17
Jan

Fiona Roberts featured on front cover of Art Collector Magazine

We’re thrilled that Fiona Roberts has been featured on the front cover the latest Art Collector Magazine for their ‘50 Things Collector’s should know’ issue!

About Fiona’s exhibition ‘Hereafter’ presented at Hugo Michell Gallery in 2024, Barnaby Smith writes: “The work of Fiona Roberts is an intense and demanding philosophical encounter, preoccupied as it is with nothing less than the human experience, mortality and how we experience death.”



Read the full article in the latest Art Collector Magazine, Issue 111.

Enquiries to mail@hugomichellgallery.com

Pictured: Fiona Roberts in Art Collector Magazine, issue 111, Jan-March 2025, front cover & pp. 170-171; Fiona Roberts’ ‘Hereafter’ at Hugo Michell Gallery, 2024, photography by Sam Roberts

Richard Lewer's 'Steve' body of work acquired by National Gallery of Australia
17
Jan

Richard Lewer's 'Steve' body of work acquired by National Gallery of Australia

We are thrilled to share that Richard Lewer’s 2024 body of work ‘Steve’ has been acquired by the National Gallery of Australia (NGA) and will be presented in the NGA’s collection display in 2025-26 before touring nationally.

Richard Lewer’s ‘Steve’ is a gentle exploration of the complexity of a family coming to terms with a dementia diagnosis. Through animation and a suite of paintings on domestic Laminex tabletops, this exhibition tells the story of man named Steve presented from the perspective of his family as they cope with the effects of his illness. In addition, the artist weaves his own personal story into the work with a group of paintings that look back on personal moments from Lewer’s own life.

Pictured: Richard Lewer’s ‘Steve’, 2023-24, acrylic paint on Laminex tabletops, dimensions variable; Richard Lewer, Steve [video], 2023-24, animation and super-8 footage, 4:39 mins, HD/4K.
Holiday Operating Hours
13
Dec

Holiday Operating Hours

We are pleased to share that Hugo Michell Gallery will be open during the following hours prior to Christmas, with an exhibition of works from the Hugo Michell Gallery Stockroom on display until the 20th of December.

Tues – Fri: 10am - 5pm
Sat – Mon: CLOSED
21 December 2024 to 7 January 2025: CLOSED
Open by appointment from 7 January

Please save the date for our first exhibitions for 2024 on Thursday 6 February with solo shows by Fiona McMonagle and Lucas Grogan.

Enquiries to mail@hugomichellgallery.com
Holiday Gift Shopping at Hugo Michell Gallery
03
Dec

Holiday Gift Shopping at Hugo Michell Gallery


Visit the Hugo Michel Gallery Online Shop to organise your holiday gift shopping, with FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $50 until 5th December.
—
The Hugo Michell Gallery Online Shop provides accessibility and insight into our artists and exhibition program; through publications, merchandise and small artworks.

For free shipping use the code SENDITFREE at checkout. Offer concludes at midnight on Thursday 5th December, 2024.

Free shipping is only valid for orders through the Hugo Michell Gallery ‘Online Shop’ within Australia over $50.

Promotion valid through 11:59pm ACDT on Thursday, December 5th. Only valid on items shippable through Australia Post and under total postage cost of $30.

Hugo Michell Gallery Opening: William Mackinnon + Amy Joy Watson
14
Nov

Hugo Michell Gallery Opening: William Mackinnon + Amy Joy Watson

Hugo Michell Gallery invites you to the opening of William Mackinnon’s ‘1000 Joys and 1000 Sorrows’ and Amy Joy Watson’s ‘Until Sunbeams Find You’ on Saturday 16th November, 1 pm - 3 pm.

This event will also officially launch Mackinnon's monograph publication.

Opening Event & Book Launch | Saturday 16th November, 1pm – 3 pm
Artist Talks | William Mackinnon & Amy Joy Watson in conversation with Hugo Michell
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William Mackinnon
1000 Joys and 1000 Sorrows

"William Mackinnon loves what paint can do and is interested in creating moments of rupture—or rapture—through the serendipities of technique. With seeming ease he captures the velvet sheen of dark, the crackled bark of a tree, the fur of the silent, waiting bushland on a road’s verge. His evocations of sea include not only the shimmer of light hitting the water, and the creaming froth of a wave, but also the feel of sea spray. Signs remain of paint spattered against the canvas, and these lush drip marks remind us of both the liquid possibilities, the very wateriness of paint, and the experience of being submerged ourselves in the deep." - Chloe Hooper
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Amy Joy Watson
Until Sunbeams Find You

In creating the embroidered tarnished brass mesh works for 'Until Sunbeams Find You', Amy Joy Watson continues to develop her own visual language of weaving metallic threads through surfaces to melding celestial and earthly landscapes with the play of light.
The new material direction in this body of work evolved from a happy accident in the studio, where pristine golden mesh developed a patina, inspiring Amy to experiment with developing patinas. Where she once applied watercolour washes to paper, the artist now tarnishes the brass with household acids, embracing the unpredictability of time and the elements.
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Hugo Michell Gallery are proud to partner with Bird in Hand Winery for this opening event.

The exhibitions will be on display from 14 November - 7 December 2024.

Hugo Michell Gallery acknowledges the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region, and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.
Richard Lewer selected for 2024 Ann Bennett Acquisition, Heide Museum of Modern Art
27
Oct

Richard Lewer selected for 2024 Ann Bennett Acquisition, Heide Museum of Modern Art

We’re delighted to share that the Heide Museum of Modern Art is currently showing Richard Lewer’s ‘Making Contact with Colin McCahon’, which has been newly acquired for the Museum collection through the Ann Bennett Acquisition fund.

Drawn from a body of work the artist describes as ‘Disaster Narratives’, consisting of a painted inventory of personal mishaps, embarrassments and social calamities, the pictures in this exhibition tell of two awkward encounters: one that took place while Lewer was a resident artist in Aotearoa/New Zealand at McCahon House, and the other when he participated in the International Studio and Curatorial Program (ISCP) in New York city.

With his wry ambiguous humour Lewer addresses oddly memorable interactions with visiting curators in each location, two of whom he is closely acquainted with and the other a prospective international connection. Naturally everything goes wrong and the visits are undercut by wild assumptions, an unwelcome summoning of spirits, and a curator with an extreme aversion to the cold.

The 2024 Ann Bennett Acquisition will be on display from 12 October 2024 to 30 March 2025 in Heide’s Kerry Gardner & Andrew Myer Project Gallery.

Pictured: Richard Lewer, I was on the McCahon residency in NZ when I had some out of towners Alexie Glass-Kantor and Emily Cormack arrived to stay the night. After dinner they decided to do a seance and try and make contact with Colin McCahon. I wanted no part as I didn't know what to say to my hero Colin if we'd got hold of him. Alexie and Emily went ahead without me and thankfully they got hold of a sailor spirit who'd been there before McCahon. Phew (installation view), 2024, Heide Museum of Modern Art. Photography by Christian Capurro

JAMES DARLING'S CELEBRATION OF LIFE
03
Oct

JAMES DARLING'S CELEBRATION OF LIFE

We are all heartbroken by the sudden loss of our much loved James. He was an essential part of our family and leaves an unfillable absence in our lives.

James was never at a loss for words and would want us to take this opportunity to say how much he loved and appreciated his many and varied friends from all walks of life and corners of the world; from the Greek Islands he loved so much, from England where he spent formative years, from the artistic hub of Adelaide, from his birthplace Melbourne, from the community he chose to call home in Keith and beyond.

We would invite you all to join us in celebrating the life of a truly original artist, farmer, activist, environmentalist, family man and friend.

James Darling’s Celebration of Life
2pm on Sunday 13th of October.
Norwood Concert Hall
175 The Parade, Norwood
(Main entrance on George St)
RSVP please – https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1296397
All welcome

With our love,
Lesley, Julian and Bernice, Alice and Damien

Pictured: James Darling on Duck Island property, 2018. Photo courtesy of JumpgateVR.