John Mutsaers wants to collaborate with local writers for his upcoming exhibition. By Catherine Watson
INVERLOCH artist John Mutsaers is fascinated by the intersection of the visual and literary arts.
To mark his August exhibition at the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre in Traralgon, curated by Gabriella Duffy of the Latrobe Regional Gallery, he wants to work with writers who will respond to a series of his paintings and drawings, based on his own childhood.
Each writer will be paired with a painting, a drawing and a cue card. John says the cue could be a quote and the connection might not be obvious.
INVERLOCH artist John Mutsaers is fascinated by the intersection of the visual and literary arts.
To mark his August exhibition at the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre in Traralgon, curated by Gabriella Duffy of the Latrobe Regional Gallery, he wants to work with writers who will respond to a series of his paintings and drawings, based on his own childhood.
Each writer will be paired with a painting, a drawing and a cue card. John says the cue could be a quote and the connection might not be obvious.
John has set similar challenges in the past: in 2020 he received 35 submissions when he asked Gippsland writers to respond to his exhibition The Infinite Birdcage.
In 2009, he challenged a group of writers to respond to one of his enigmatic paintings, Dressed in Cohen. One writer was moved to write over 10,000 words. “And they were good!” John says. This time he’s thinking around 1000 words, more or less.
The drawings will depict the interests of a 12-14-year-old boy of John’s era, ie. the mid-1950s. While John grew up in the Netherlands, he says that’s not really the point. “It could be set anywhere and be about any boy of that period, real or imagined.”
The 12 selected writers will be very much a part of the exhibition, which opens on August 12 and runs until October 15.
The project is being run in conjunction with the Bass Coast Prize for Non-Fiction.
The writers will be invited to attend a creative writers’ workshop with a professional writer. A manuscript of the writings, along with John’s paintings and drawings, will be submitted to a publisher, giving the authors the prospect of a permanent record of their participation.
Interested in being part of this fascinating project? Email around 250 words of your own creative writing to John Mutsaers at [email protected] by June 30. If it’s an extract from a longer piece, feel free to explain the context.
In 2009, he challenged a group of writers to respond to one of his enigmatic paintings, Dressed in Cohen. One writer was moved to write over 10,000 words. “And they were good!” John says. This time he’s thinking around 1000 words, more or less.
The drawings will depict the interests of a 12-14-year-old boy of John’s era, ie. the mid-1950s. While John grew up in the Netherlands, he says that’s not really the point. “It could be set anywhere and be about any boy of that period, real or imagined.”
The 12 selected writers will be very much a part of the exhibition, which opens on August 12 and runs until October 15.
The project is being run in conjunction with the Bass Coast Prize for Non-Fiction.
The writers will be invited to attend a creative writers’ workshop with a professional writer. A manuscript of the writings, along with John’s paintings and drawings, will be submitted to a publisher, giving the authors the prospect of a permanent record of their participation.
Interested in being part of this fascinating project? Email around 250 words of your own creative writing to John Mutsaers at [email protected] by June 30. If it’s an extract from a longer piece, feel free to explain the context.