A wonderful energy, a wonderful artist, a wonderful human being – sadly missed!
Marcus
Published on April 23, 2014
Interview filmed on the occasion of the solo exhibition Space and Gravity by Mari Funaki at Klimt02 Gallery in Barcelona in February 2008. The artist talks about her work, the process of work: drawing, breaking predictability, her gallery and steel and black concept.
David Neale (Australian, b. 1977)
Brooch
Steel, paint, marble, lapis lazuli
2009-2010
A nice double act of an exhibition at Gallery Funaki that showcases the jewellery of David Neale and first time exhibitor Emma Price. Neale’s delicate folded and layered brooches of bud and leaf-life forms sparkle with crushed marble, turquoise and lapis lazuli forming a palette of pale blues, pinks, greens and vibrant hints of red, the shapes almost a form of metal collage. As pieces of art they work excellently but as jewellery they seem fragile perhaps due to the thinness of the metal used and what I perceived as a lack of structural integrity. As brooches I wonder how carefully one would have to wear them (very carefully I suspect) and how long the crushed sparkling rock would adhere to the surface of the metal (I have since been reliably informed by Simon that they are very sturdy but this was an initial reaction on picking up the brooches).
Of more significance are the articulated trapezoid necklaces by Emma Price. These are stunning architectural works (at very reasonable prices!) that are made of gold, silver, brass and copper. They exude a quietness and balance that is beautiful and a playfulness (because of the interlinked forms that actually move) that is delightful. In these geometric forms there seems to be a suspension in/of reality as if the world is hanging by a thread. A bright future awaits for this artist.
Dr Marcus Bunyan
Many thankx to Katie Scott and Gallery Funaki for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image.
David Neale (Australian, b. 1977)
Brooch
Steel, paint, marble, lapis lazuli
2009-2010
David Neale (Australian, b. 1977)
Brooch
Steel, paint, marble, lapis lazuli
2009-2010
Highly respected Melbourne jeweller David Neale presents new pieces alongside Emma Price, who will be showing her first significant group of work at Gallery Funaki in this exhibition.
David Neale’s intriguing folded forms, borne of his sensitive treatment of metal sheeting using texture and paint, have earned him a significant reputation both in Australia and overseas. His recent work shows a shift away from botanical influences, towards more abstract and expressive forms. There is a bold sense of the painterly in these works, as Neale’s powdery, textured colours become a dominant focus.
Emma Price completed her Masters of Gold and Silversmithing at RMIT in 2005 before spending a year at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts in 2008. Her finely balanced structures are constructed from painstakingly drawn down tubing in gold, brass, silver and copper. The shifting, architectonic forms of her neckpieces seem to dance against the body.
Text from the Gallery Funaki website [Online] Cited 26/08/2010 no longer available online
Emma Price (Australian, b. 1975)
Necklace 2
silver, brass, gold
2010
Emma Price (Australian, b. 1975)
Necklace 6
silver, brass, copper, gold
2010
Emma Price (Australian, b. 1975)
Necklace 8
silver
2010
Gallery Funaki
Sackville House
Apartment 33
27 Flinders Lane
Melbourne 3000
Australia
Opening hours:
Wednesday – Friday 12 – 5pm
Saturday on occasion (check our socials) or by appointment
It is with great sadness that I hear of the passing of Mari Funaki on the 13th May 2010.
I met Mari many times and she was always wonderfully generous with her energy, knowledge and enthusiasm. She was an amazing artist, I loved her work especially the stunning anamorphic black bracelets and the fact that she used photography of Bernd and Hiller Becher as part of her inspiration. My conversation with Mari in 2006 and photographs of her work can be found on the Notes from a Conversation with Mari Funaki posting.
Vale Mari Funaki
“A memorial will be held on Tuesday June 1st, 2010 at 11.00am in THE GREAT HALL of the National Gallery of Victoria, International.“
Mari Funaki outside Gallery Funaki
Photo: Marcus Bunyan
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Brooch
2009
Silver, paint
Jewellery as art; is art
Brooches, objects
Robust/delicate
Holistic body of work
Affirmation of line and form
Simplicity/complexity of shapes
Span ______ (meta)physical
[Interior] exterior!
elemental | articulation
Volume ((( ))) form
&
arch-itecture
SPACE
√
beauty
……………………….
Dr Marcus Bunyan
Many thankx to Gallery Funaki for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image.
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Brooch
2009
Silver
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Brooch
2009
Silver
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Brooch
2009
Silver
“A spiritual and private space. Ritual object, jewellery. Linear structures appear fragile and monumental to cradle the internal spirit. They appear to float in space, hovering, penetrating, a temporary existence. Nature is the reference, and the geometry of nature and architecture inform this world.”
Carlier Makigawa
Carlier Makigawa explores the parameters of small spaces in her new exhibition October 2009. Her spare, exacting constructions in silver wire have a monumentality that defies their scale and delicacy. Her new work consists of brooches and objects which move beyond the botanical inspiration of her earlier work to engage with more abstract notions of movement, compression and spatial manipulation.
Text from the Gallery Funaki website [Online] Cited 01/05/2019 no longer available online
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Object
2009
Silver
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Object
2009
Silver
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Brooch
2009
Silver
Carlier Makigawa (Australian, b. 1952)
Neckpiece
2009
Silver
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Rings
1971
This is a superlative exhibition, one of the highlights of the year so far in Melbourne.
The exhibition presents work from the early 1970s to contemporary work and evidences the breadth of vision of this master craftsman and artist, the arc of his investigation showing a consistency of feeling for the energy and form of his materials over many decades. Technically the work is superb; conceptually the work transcends the boundaries of jewellery and becomes something else altogether: it becomes magical.
Kuhnen’s use of colour in his favoured anodised aluminium material is exquisite, the perfection of his forms flawless. His fabulous Vessels reminding me of the ancient Neolithic standing stone circles at Stonehenge in their shape and use of vertical buttresses in different materials (such stainless steel and granite) that intersect the oval forms. His Boxes are like small ancient reliquaries, objects for holding ashes worked with a delicacy, simplicity and feeling for form and colour that is absolutely beautiful and consistent with the containment of energy within their structure.
I went with Marianne Cseh a jeweller friend of mine. We stood transfixed before this work, peering closely at it and gasping in appreciation of the beauty, technical proficiency and pure poetry of the pieces. This exhibition is highly recommended and not to be missed!
Now showing with the international SCHMUCK jewellery exhibition from Germany.
A book to accompany the exhibition is available from the RMIT Gallery.
Dr Marcus Bunyan
Many thankx to RMIT Gallery for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image.
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Ring
1972
Stainless steel, synthetic ruby disc
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Brooch
2003
Anodised aluminium, monel
Ring
1972
Stainless steel, synthetic ruby disc
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Boxes
1980
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Box and pendant
1980
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Tray
1986
Anodised aluminium, titanium, stainless steel
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Centrepiece
1987
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Centrepiece
1991
Anodised aluminium, silver, monel: fabricated
In his work as a jeweller, object maker and photographer, Johannes Kuhnen is engaged with the interpretation and manipulation of a precise visual language of forms. The dramatic curvilinear shape of this centrepiece has been designed to emphasise the particular visual qualities of its materials and to fulfil its role as a low, but commanding central presence on a table. The vivid, iridescent colour of its anodised aluminium rim is designed to interact with differing light conditions, while the technical and precious qualities of its monel and silver elements play against each other. This orchestration of metals is underpinned with an unseen but precise and ingenious inner structure, giving this object weight and functional strength.
Text © National Gallery of Australia, Canberra [Online] Cited 10/03/2019
Johannes Kuhnen has made a pioneering contribution to Australian design and gold and silver smithing through his commitment as a generous educator and innovative practitioner. This exhibition will create linkages between his earlier works, some of which was made in Germany prior to migrating to Australia and new work specifically produced for this exhibition and this will be done both with objects and through a catalogue / monograph to be launched at the opening venue. The exhibition will borrow from Australian public and private collections to facilitate the demonstration of connecting design elements in the work from both significant streams in Kuhnen’s work in jewellery and hollowware.
Text from the RMIT Gallery website [Online] Cited 02/07/2009. No longer available online
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Vessel
2007
Anodised aluminium, titanium, stainless steel
11.2 h x 84.5 w x 21.0 d cm
Weight 14 kg
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Vessel
2008
Anodised aluminium, titanium, stainless steel
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Vessel
2009
Anodised aluminium, titanium, stainless steel
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Armring
1981
Anodised aluminium
9.8 h x 10.4 w cm
Johannes Kuhnen (Australian born Germany, b. 1952)
Armring
1990
Armring, anodised aluminium, gold 750, granite
RMIT Gallery
344 Swanston St
, Melbourne
Phone: +61 3 9925 1717
Opening hours:
Tuesday – Friday 11am – 5pm
Saturday 12.30 – 5pm
Closed public holidays, Sundays and Mondays.
Opening: Tuesday 11th November, 2008
Helen Britton (Australian, b. 1966)
Brooch
2008
Moving through Melbourne’s busy laneways from the Oleh Witer exhibition we arrive at the intimate, stylish Gallery Funaki to view the work of Australian artist Helen Britton who works with the form of contemporary jewellery. The crowd spilled onto the street and the small space was busy with an interesting crowd in attendance.
The exhibition presents brooches, earrings, rings and necklaces built with the artists trademark assemblages. Whilst the necklaces are more prosaic (movie like reels and slinks of melted plastic restrained within metal banding) it is the brooches that capture and hold the viewer’s attention. Sci-fi like grided circles collide with concave discs filled with glistening blue crystals; thrusters and steel from a miniature collapsed lunar landing vehicle vie with clusters of vibrant colours that appear to be imbedded into a lunar landscape: delicate crimped and folded metal landscapes with the appearance of collapsed geometric origami.
These are wonderfully inventive constructions, invigorating for their energy and exuberance. Britton has described her work as “industrial baroque”. Perhaps an equally pertinent description would be spatial, or ‘space baroque’ as the artist investigates the nexus, the cellular biology of matter, reality and the spaces we inhabit.
Dr Marcus Bunyan
Helen Britton (Australian, b. 1966)
Brooch
2008
Gallery Funaki Sackville House Apartment 33 27 Flinders Lane Melbourne 3000 Australia
Opening hours: Wednesday – Friday 12 – 5pm Saturday on occasion (check our socials) or by appointment
Art Blart _ art and cultural memory archive 
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