Symbiotic Cultures

Symbiotic Cultures mapped connections and distinctions between an intergenerational group of artists who collectively have been active in the border region for over four decades. The exhibition included the five-part weaving Aurora Australis, made by the Olive Street Weavers between 1987 and ‘88. The work provided a sense of place, under the Southern Lights of its title, but specifically on the site of the former Albury Art Gallery where the work was displayed semi-permanently between 1988 and 2015.

Each of the artists included in Symbiotic Cultures share either direct or tangential connections that have fostered each other’s works and collectively benefited the artistic community of Albury Wodonga. These connections exist through exhibition histories, friendships, education, and through local artist-run initiatives such as GIGS, now Gateway Gallery.

The exhibition took its title from Susie Losch’s series of artworks made of Scobys – the Symbiotic Cultures Of Bacteria and Yeast that grow Kombucha. There is a neat analogy between carefully tending to the volatile and sensitive Scoby and the growth of an artistic community. Both take care, commitment and dedication, traits generously demonstrated by the artists of Symbiotic Cultures.

Artists
Jo Davenport
Mary Jane Griggs
Stephanie Jakovac
Susie Losch
Ken Raff
Cornélia Selover
Shauna Lee Stewart
Olive Street Weavers: Margaret Clough, Annabel Colquhoun, Audrey Coutts, Jan Joustra, Margaret Power, Barbara Waite