melissa smith at QVMAG ― tracing the line
Printmaker Melissa Smith has been honoured with a solo exhibition at Launceston’s QVMAG. But, it also gives us a sneak peek into her special Handmark outing early next year.
Tracing a Line follows the evolution of Melissa’s mark-making in her beautifully sparse landscapes of remote Tasmania. “This is a very intimate show of 20 works ,” she tells us, “and it follows the shifts and changes in mark-making over my artistic career.” Dating back to 2004, the earliest print in the QVMAG exhibition, Traces of Touch, presents a mass of detailed lines contained within an elongated rock formation.
But with the passing of time, Melissa throws off the shackles of control as risks are taken, and confidence grows. In contrast, her recently completed, Collecting Thoughts, Lake Sorell II, is imbued with an organic freedom and fluidity. “Looking at these two works which bookend my artistic practice, you are able to trace how my lines have become more unrestrained as I introduce elements of serendipity.”
Meanwhile, Melissa is busy preparing for a ‘birthday’ exhibition at Handmark next February. Collecting Thoughts, Lake Sorell II will feature, along with another piece on display at QVMAG Galaxial Threads – a dreamlike watery work in soft pinks and blues – yet another testament to the remarkable artistic journey of this exceptional Tasmanian artist.
Melissa Smith’s Tracing a Line exhibition at QVMAG in Launceston runs until early November