Robyn Backen

ROBYN BACKEN

www.robynbacken.com

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

Master of Art History and Theory, College of Fine Arts, UNSW

Bachelor of Visual Arts, Sydney College of the Arts

Diploma of Visual Arts, Sydney College of the Arts

OTHER POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION

Metro Screen, Planning Skills for Interactive Media Projects

Australian Network for Art and Technology, Summer School - Perth

Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam. (Australia Council: Overseas Study Grant)

International Summer Academy, Salzburg. Sculpture - Marcus Lupertz

International Summer Academy, Salzburg. Sculpture - Edvardo Paolozzi
(Awarded Scholarship for the following year)

International Summer Academy, Salzburg (Awarded Goldsmith Prize)

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

Artspace, Sydney (November) - collaboration with John Tonkin

SSO, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney

littoral, Artspace, Sydney - June
littoral and Scales of the Sole, IMA, Brisbane - August

Scales of the Sole, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney

Presage, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney.
verge in rain ... a translation, Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney

verge in rain, Kunsthaus Rhenania Gallery, Cologne

pronto—Compounded Garden, installation, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney
pronto, Fifth Australian Sculpture Triennial, Linden, Melbourne

Various Occupations, Linden (St Kilda Arts Centre) Melbourne

SPRUNG, installation, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney

Second Generation, Bakelite Objects, Contemporary Jewellery Gallery, Sydney
Seeing Double (collaborative project with Chris Fortescue), First Draft, Sydney

Installation, Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam

Coming Through, Performance and Video, Gallery Mattar, Cologne

PUBLIC ART COMMISSIONS

Crowing Light - Arboretum, Canberra (in progress)

Droplet Lend Lease, Hickson Rd, Sydney

Lux St Canisis, Kings Cross, Sydney

the building that speaks, New Farm Powerhouse, Brisbane

Weeping Walls, Sydney International Airport, Sydney

Archaeology of Bathing, Sculpture Walk, Sydney

Signage of the Canberra Museum and Gallery, Canberra

Blindfold, Liverpool Library, Sydney

Christ Knows, Powerhouse Facade, Casula , Sydney

Signage of the Powerhouse, Casula, Sydney

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

Break in Play, Chrissie Cotter Gallery, Pidock Street, Camperdown, Sydney

ALSO Conversion, Goulburn Regional Gallery, Goulburn

Imagining Prometheus, Palazzo dell Ragione, Milan, Italy

Rice Talk, Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial 2003, Echigo-Tsumari Region, Japan

Intersections of Art and Science, Ivan Dougherty Gallery, College of Fine Arts, Sydney

Catching...the harbour, Australian Museum, Sydney

Flow, National Gallery Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

UNIVERSE Project, Experimental Art Foundation, Adelaide
Mapping Your Countries, Djamu Gallery, Australian Museum, Customs House, Sydney
4 Blind Dates at the Kendra, Sanskriti Kendra, New Delhi, India

Dots to Data, Australian Perspecta 1997, Ivan Dougherty Gallery, College of Fine Arts, Sydney
Field of Dreams: Message Sticks for Native Title, SH Irvin Gallery, Sydney

Bi Focal - Spirit and Place: The Spirit in Australian Art 1880-1996, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney

Shifting Edges, Powerhouse, Casula, Sydney

Sweet Dreams, Australian Perspecta 1993, Satellite Exhibition

Clarendon Homes, Homeworld ll, Prospect, Sydney

Clear Case, Ben Grady Gallery
FACT: An Installation Publication, Ars Multiplicata, A National Touring Project, Sydney
New Acquisions, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney
Derision and Desire -The Car, Blaxland Gallery, Grace Bros., Sydney

Sprung, Australian Perspecta 1991, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Discrete Entity, Canberra School of Art Gallery, Canberra
Urban Detritus, Australian National Gallery, Canberra

Urban Construction Project, Construction-Performance with Andrew Charker and Anne Morrison, City Square Melbourne
The Contemporary Art of Dress, Marimura Arts Museum, Japan.

The Contemporary Art of Dress, Victoria and Albert Museum, London and Powerhouse, Sydney
1989 Perth International Craft Triennial, Perth
Dreams are not stories........they happen in space., performance with Judy Best, Queen Victoria Building, Sydney
Inside the Greenhouse Effect, Tin Sheds Gallery, Sydney

Accentrix, Albury Regional Art Centre
Australian Decorative Arts 1788-1988, Australian National Gallery, Canberra

Self Portrait Show, Cog, Sydney

Group Exhibition: Queen Victoria Art Gallery, Launceston

Group Exhibition, Contemporary Jewellery Gallery, Sydney
Personal Choice, Jam Factory Gallery, Adelaide

Streetspace, Shopfront Installation
Opening Group Exhibition, VO Gallery, Washington
Crosscurrents, Powerhouse, Sydney

Sculpture Exhibition & Multi-media Exhibition, Niew Gallery, Amsterdam
Group Exhibition, Sternteiler Gallery, Bonn
Sculpture Exhibition, Salzburg

Meat Market Exhibition, Melbourne
Goldsmths Messe Exhibition, Munich
Fordor Museum, Amsterdam (Academy organised exhibition)
Jewellery Re-Defined, London

Meat Market Exhibition, Melbourne

Australian Contemporary Jewellery Exhibition,
Travelling Show - Japan, Asia, Australia

PUBLICATIONS

Sally Couacaud, “2003 Echigo-Tsumari Triennial, “ Art & Australia, Vol. 41 No. 4, Winter 2004, pp. 535 - 537

`Critic's Picks,' Sydney Morning Herald), Aug 17 - 23, p. 27, (Metro)
`Symmetry and its Dissimilarities,' Intersections of Art & Science, 7 June - 14th July, exh. cat. Ivan Dougherty Gallery, College of Fine Arts, The University of New South Wales
`Knot Architecture,' John Gollings, Monument, No. 42, June/ July, pp. 55-60
`A walk on the short-sighted side,' Elizabeth Farrelly, Sydney Morning Herald (Metropolitan), June 4, p. 16
`Museum for a PlayStation generation,' Ian Perlman, Sydney Morning Herald (Metropolitan), March 9, p. 16
`Funk & Functionality,' Peter Skinner, Architecture Australia, Vol. 90, No. 1, January/ February, pp. 60 - 63
`History house in a green-metal “shed”,' Mark Metherell, Sydney Morning Herald, January 8, p.3 (News)

`Anything Goes,' Benjamin Genocchio, The Weekend Australia, December 9-10, pp. 16 - 18 (Arts)
'The Art of the Airport,' Tempe Macgowan, Monument, No. 38, Oct/ Nov, pp. 104 - 107
Robyn Backen:The Archaeology of Bathing', Joan Brassil, Art & Australia, Vol. 38, Spring, pp. 72 - 73
'Public Art in the Olympic City' by Susan Best, Architecture Australia, September/ October, pp. 81 - 85
`Weeping Walls,' Sydney Airport Project Report
'Maps of the heart sweeten departures,' Geraldine O'Brien, Sydney Morning Herald , 24 July, pp. 12 - 13 (Arts)
'Impressive Entry,' Leo Schofield, Sunday Telegraph, 9 July
`Walls with an emotional message,' Andrew London, Southern Scene, Southern Courier, June 27, p. 32
`Excess baggage - Art goes to the wall,' John Sharpe, Sydney Morning Herald , June 17, p. 2 (Travel)
`In touch with new art currents,' Sharifah Hamzah, Life Sunday, May 26
`Cinta IT, sayang art,' Laura Fan, The Edge Afterhours, April 17
`First-of-its-kind E-art exhibition, Brian Martin, The Star, April 3, p. 10 (Metro)
'Casula Works - Public Art at the Casula Powerhouse Art Centre', brochure
`Weeping Walls - Robyn Backen,' John Murphy, Sydney International Airport
`Archaeology of Bathing,' Celebrating Sydney 2000 - 100 Legacies, A Pesaro Architectural Guidebook, ed. Patrick Bingham-Hall, Pesaro Publishing, Sydney, pp. 11 - 12

'Artist Choice: The Holy Face' by Robyn Backen, Art and Australia, vol. 36, p. 348
'Interiors and the Architectural Imprint' by Phillip Kent, Art and Australia vol 36, p. 3
`Afterword: Perspective on Perspecta,' Jacqueline Millner, in `uncertain ground/ essays between art and nature,' ed. Martin Thomas, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, pp. 161 - 175

'Art Sensor' by Jacqueline Millner, RealTime, April-May, p. 41
'The Water Works of Robyn Backen' by Sue Best - Eyeline Spring '98

'Picture This!' by Genevieve Hawks, The University of Sydney News, 25 Sept
'United in a natural division,' Benjamin Genocchio, Business Weekly Review, Aug 25
'Perspecta Perspectives, 'Susan Chenery, Sydney Morning Herald, Aug 8, pp. 4-5 (Metro)
'Sydney Customs House (Public Art Competition)', Monument, No. 17, pp.108,109

'Numinous Worlds' by Nick Waterlow - Spirit and Place Catalogue'96
'Cultural Agenda' by Andrew Nimmo - Architecture Review Spring '96
Robyn Backen: Verge in Rain, Nicholas Strobbe, Eyeline, No. 30, Autumn/ Winter, p. 38

'Robyn Backen: Galerie am Nil,' Jurgen Kisters (trans. Jan Bruck), Kunstforum, Winter
'Casula Powerhouse Regional Art Centre' Jo Holder Art and Australia - Spring

'Carnivorous Plants' by Christopher Chapman, Art and Australia, Sept
'Contemporary history in the making' by Melissa Cater, Artlink, vol. 14 no 3 Spring '94
'Public Art in Sydney' by Sally Couacaud, Artlink vol 14 no 3 Spring '94
'Nose in a Window" by Jackie Dunn, Object - issue 2 '94, p. 3
'Water - Robyn Backen' by Suzanne Davies, Monument - vol. 1, No. 2
Sydney Review - May

Artlink - June /Aug
'from POWER to the PEOPLE' by Geraldine O'brien Sydney Morning Herald 4 Aug '93
'A thousand Eyes' by Christopher Chapman Sculpture Triennial catalogue
'Home is where the art is' by Michael Hutak Sydney Morning Herald 19 Oct '93

'Making the City' by Jim Colman Object - Spring 1992
'City as Artform,' Joan Kerr, Sydney Morning Herald, July 11(Arts)
`Discrete Entity,' Mary Eagle, .Art and Text, January

'Perspecta Reviewed,' David Watt, Art Monthly Australia , Oct, pp. 3-6
'The Object of Installation,' Jackie Dunn,. Crafts NSW, Spring, pp. 18 - 20
'Unified Disparity' by Joanna Mendelssohn, The Bulletin
`Installing the format of the future?,' Terry Smith,. Sydney Morning Herald, Aug 17
'3D art,' Christine Harris, 3D World, Aug 13, p. 22
'Taking a swipe at Conformity' by Sasha Grishin,. Canberra Times, Oct
'Discrete Entity' by Anne McDonald, Agenda 20/21
'Discrete Entity: The Accomplice and Installation,' Chris Chapman, Eyeline, Summer, pp. 30-31

'Autumn in November,' Julie Ewington, Art Monthly Australia, Dec, pp. 14-15

'…a new beginning, a raid on the inarticulate - An Essay on Robyn Backen's Bakelite Jewellery,' Julie Ewington, VACB Overseas Promotions Magazine, p. 19
Interior Design, Sept
'Breaking Mother's Crystal,' Mark Mordue, Follow Me, September, p. 76

'Australian Jewellers,' Patricia Anderson

'A Show for Quick Steppers,' Bruce Adams, Sydney Morning Herald, Dec 5

“Seeing Double,' Paola Talbert, Photofile, Autumn
Artist/Designers, Sydney College of the Arts: 10 years
Artlink, `Art and Technology', Jun
Seeing Double,' Megan Cronly, Follow Me, Jun/Jul, p.46, 47
Robyn Tudor, Lemel, `Review', June

'All that Glitters,' Robyn Ferrell, Sydney Morning Herald, 9 Oct
Harpers Bazaar, July

GRANTS

NAWIC: Award for Achievement in Art in the Built Environment

Asialink: Residency in Delhi India

Australia Council: Project Grant & New Works Grant

Australia Council: Quick Response Grant

Australia Council: Professional Development Grant - Artist in Residence Germany

Australia Council: Project Grant

Australia Council: Overseas Study Grant - Rietveld Academy Amsterdam

LECTURING POSITIONS BEFORE 2000

University of Technology

Sydney College of the Arts

University of Western Sydney

Sydney University, Architecture Faculty

University of Western Sydney

Hornsby Technical College

Visiting Lecturer at The Canberra School of Art, Canberra

Randwick Technical College, Sydney

SELECTED PUBLIC TALKS/CONFERENCES/WORKSHOPS

Artist Week Darwin - Northern Territory University

Visual Arts Conference Program - Focus New Stage 6 Visual Arts Syllabus

Art and Architecture: Collaboration, Tusculum House - Monday Night Talks, Sydney

Perspecta Forum - 'Dots to Data' Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
'Maker and Audience', AUSGLASS Conference, Sydney
Baroda University - Architecture and Art Faculties, Baroda, India

'Making the City' organised by Artspace at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, (a collaborative presentation with Architect-Peter Tonkin and Designer - Danny Venlet)
'Connections' organised by J&MGA
'...who holds the reigns' lecture and workshop, Perth

Art Gallery of NSW, Public talk

RESIDENCIES (selected)

University of Wollongong, Wollongong

Australian Museum, Sydney

Sanskriti Kendra, New Delhi, India

Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane

Kunsthaus Rhenania, Cologne, Germany

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

Australia Museum, Sydney

Casula Powerhouse, Sydney

Powerhouse Museum, Sydney

Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth

Powerhouse Museum, Sydney

National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

National Gallery of Australia, Canberra