Place of Assembly

The Schoolhouse Studios have been both a hub for local artists and a gallery for art lovers. It’s hard to believe, but this place houses over 75 artists in residence on a site that has been part of the Abbotsford landscape for 120 years. Sadly, as the end of 2012 approaches, so does its demise: it’s scheduled for demolition.

As a farewell tribute and celebration of the site, Schoolhouse Studio founders Elizabeth Barnett and Alice Glenn are curating a two-week exhibition. Expect rampant creative outpourings from the residents and 11 guest artists, spanning the mediums of performance, video, sound, instillation and participatory works. They’ll incorporate the layered histories of the site, including its past as a monastery and Steiner school.

Here are just five artists to keep an eye out for:

James Carey and Campbell Drake
This duo builds bridges between architecture, design, painting and installation; multi-layered environments that force the viewer to look both inwards and outwards.

Zoe Scoglio
Zoe might be described as a mystic geologist who brings rocks to life through the mediums of performance, sound and installation. Her work looks intensely at the parallels between human and geological timeframes.

Eugenia Lim
Lim’s practice sees her dissect ideas of connection and isolation through technology. In her new work for this show, Sunfade: A Room of One’s Own, Lim continues to dissect themes of the female identity, right to agency and self-determination through performance and sculpture.

Dominic Redfern
Video artist Dominic Redfern has created an otherworldly video art installation as part of his ongoing research into contemporary Australian video practices. This particular work attempts to connect with the ghosts of past students who went to school here and draw them all into his ethereal production.