SIMON STRONG

Strong is intrigued by dreams and constructs of memory, the way in which our interpretation of events is often influenced by past experiences, family or personal history. The idea of previous events being somehow ‘imprinted’ on a particular space, dilapidated buildings overrun, or ‘reclaimed’ by the environment, reflect an intermingling of past and present Strong finds particularly resonant.

“In a broader sense, I have been interested in the way man-made objects and spaces collide with nature”, Strong agrees. “I am interested in photographing abandoned buildings, and creating scenes around them, where nature has overgrown the spaces that people used to occupy – in a way, taking back what was originally uninhabited”.

A well-honed ability to conceptualise scenarios and divergent possibilities, to envisage the circumstances of transformation and change, to address notions of self and belonging, permeate Strong’s creative centre. “I don’t feel so concerned anymore that my work needs to be immediately comprehensible”, Strong reflects, “I’m consciously allowing concepts to evolve and develop in a less linear fashion. I’m enjoying the possibilities presented by a more enigmatic or mysterious tone…where you only get glimpses of what may be a more encompassing psycho-drama…

Inga Walton, 2007
Excerpt from Even if you leave, I will always be with you...catalogue essay

Gallery artists Mark Kimber and Simon Strong interviewed on ABC Sunday Arts, 7 June 2009, as part of a segment on the touring exhibition "Phantasia". Photographer Alexia Sinclair is also interviewed and commentary provided by Alasdair Foster (director, ACP Sydney) and Robert McFarlane (art critic and photographer). The works of Magdalena Bors and Andrew Mamo are also shown.

SIMON STRONG - CURRICULUM VITAE

Born Vietnam, 1974 (arrived Australia, 1975)
1993-95 Bachelor of Graphic Design, National School of Design.
1992 VCE, St Michael’s Grammar School, Prahran, Victoria.
Resides in Melbourne, Australia

INDIVIDUAL EXHIBITIONS

2010 "The Green Wood" John Buckley Gallery, Richmond, Victoria.
2010 "The Green Wood" Martin Browne Fine Art, Potts Point, NSW.
2010 “First Born” (in collaboration with Robert Doble), Block Projects, Melbourne, Victoria.
2007 “Even If You Leave, I Will Always Be With You....", John Buckley Gallery, Richmond, Victoria
2005 "Natural Selection", King Street Gallery on Burton, Darlinghurst, New South Wales.
2004 "Nature Strip", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2003 "Calling Earth", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2003 "Disturbia", The Church Gallery, Claremont, Western Australia.
2002 "Clone", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2001 "I Wannabe A Star", Mansour Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2001 "Of Two Minds" (curated by John Buckley Fine Art) at Café Blu Pols, Prahran, Victoria.
2000 "Domestic Gods", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
1999 "Domestic Gods", CASspace, Melbourne, Victoria.

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2010 Martin Browne Fine Art @ Greenaway Gallery
2010 Melbourne Art Fair 2010, Martin Browne Fine Art
2010 "Phantasia" (touring), Wollongong City Gallery, Wollongong, NSW.
2010 "Phantasia" (touring), Plimsoll Gallery, University of Tasmania, Hobart TAS.
2009 “Phantasia” (touring), the gallery of the Australian Embassy (as part of Photoquai 2009), Paris, France.
2009 “Now 2.0”, ACGA Gallery at Federation Square, Melbourne, Victoria
2009 "Phantasia" (touring), Samstag Museum, Adelaide, SA.
2009 “Botanica”, Martin Browne Fine Art, Potts Point, NSW.
2009 "A Fragile State", Martin Browne Fine Art, Potts Point, NSW.
2008 "FX in Contemporary Photography", Elisabeth Murdoch Gallery, McClelland Gallery + Sculpture Park, Langwarrin, Victoria.
2008 Melbourne Art Fair 2008, Melbourne
2008 "Phantasia", Australian Centre for Photography (ACP), Paddington, New South Wales.
2008 Urban, Kings Street Gallery on Williams, Sydney
2008 The Contemporary Collage : Australian collage and assemblage, John Buckley Gallery, Melbourne
2007 The Summer Exhibition, John Buckley Gallery, Melbourne
2007 The Tenth Hutchins Art Prize, The Long Gallery, Salamanca Place, Hobart, Tasmania.
2007 William & Winifred Bowness Photography Prize, Monash Gallery of Art, Wheelers Hill, Victoria.
2007 "Art For Science", Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Charity Exhibition, Nellie Castan Gallery, South Yarra, Victoria.
2007 "Snap Freeze: Still Life Now", Tarrawarra Museum of Art, Healesville, Victoria.
2007 Prometheus Visual Arts Award, All Saints Anglican School, Merrimac, Queensland
2006 "Light Sensitive: Contemporary Australian Photography from the Loti Smorgon Fund", The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia at Federation Square
2006 "Snapshot", John Buckley Gallery, Richmond, Victoria.
2005 "Summer Exhibition", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2005 "The Chandelier Show", Ladner & Fell Gallery, Armadale, Victoria.
2005 "Art For Science", Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Charity Exhibition,
Nellie Castan Gallery, South Yarra, Victoria.
2005 Josephine Ulrick & Win Schubert Photography Award, Gold Coast City Art Gallery,
Surfers Paradise, Queensland.
2002 "Christmas Show", Span Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
"Stranger Than Truth", Australian Centre For Photography, Paddington, New South
Wales
2000 Span Galleries at Melbourne Art Fair, Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton, Victoria.
2000 Emerging Artists Program, Bulle Galleries, Melbourne, Victoria.
2000 Maxwell Summer Salon, Centre for Contemporary Photography (CCP), Fitzroy,
Victoria.
1999 National Touring Exhibition of Contemporary Art. Modern Art

ARTICLES, ESSAYS & REVIEWS:

Allen, Felicity, "Focus on males" ('Arts & Entertainment'), in The Herald Sun, 8 February, 2000.
Backhouse, Megan, "Galleries", in The Age (melbourne) magazine, Issue #31, May, 2007, p.89.
Backhouse, Megan, "Art galleries" ('A2'), in The Age, 6 May, 2006, p.22.
Banks, Ron, "Digital helps to disturb" ('Today'), in The West Australian, 28 January, 2003, p.2.
Barclay, Alison, "Photos' synthesis", in The Herald Sun, 12 September, 2006, p.56.
Barry, Helen, "Natural Selection", in Artwrite [on-line], College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, February, 2005.
Blond, Simon, "Partners in provocative art" ('Weekend Extra'), in The West Australian, 8 February, 2003, p.13.
Considine, Simone, "Urban turmoil", in The Western Suburbs Weekly, 28 January, 2003, p.19.
Crawford, Ashley, "Around the Galleries", in The Age ('A2'), 23 June, 2007, p.22.
"Disturbia" [photo essay], Large Magazine, July, 2001, p.26-35.
Commons & Sense, Issue 19 ("Love"), Spring/February, 2002 [Japan] Ô guest designer & contributor for the entire magazine.
Faith-Dove, Melanie [photographer], "Around Town...Richard Clements survey", in The Age ('The Culture'), 18 July, 2002, p.2.
Leong, Owen, "Simon Strong", in Nothingmag [on-line], Issue 18, June, 2007.
Makin, Jeff, "Critics Choice", in The Herald Sun, 7 May, 2007, p.96.
Makin, Jeff, "Shining lights in our art market" ('Entertainment'), in The Herald Sun, 15 May, 2006, p.90.
McAuliffe, Chris, "Suburbia Revisited", in Photofile, Issue 69 ("Suburbia"), August, 2003, p.22-25.
McCulloch, Janice, "Profiles", in Art Almanac, May, 2007, p.197.
Nelson, Robert, "New world born of ancient myths", in The Age, 2 February, 2011 p.17
Nelson, Robert, "Imagination transcends camera's lens" ('Metro'), in The Age, 17 May, 2007, p.22.
Nelson, Robert, "Search for perfect kiss of content and form" ('Arts'), in The Age, 26 May, 2001, p.20.
Nelson, Robert, "A fraction too much fiction" ('The Culture', partial cover), in The Age, 2 February, 2000, p.1&6.
Nelson, Robert, "Hardy & Strong: Domestic Gods", in Photofile, Issue 59 ("Fictions" cover story), April 2000, p.55.
[Unattributed], "Church Gallery", in The Sunday Times [WA], 2 February, 2003, p.56.
Walton, Inga, "Poster-Culture: Simon Strong", in Poster, Issue 15: Belief, Winter, 2007, p.27.
Walton, Inga, "Even If You Leave, I Will Always Be With You....", catalogue essay, April, 2007.
Walton, Inga, "Natural Selection", exhibition essay, February, 2005.
Walton, Inga, "Making a Strong Point", in The Independent Arts Review, Edition 19, September, 2004, p.3.
Walton, Inga, "Nature Strip", exhibition essay, September, 2004.
Walton, Inga, "Calling Earth", exhibition essay, August, 2003.
Walton, Inga, "Disturbia", exhibition essay, January, 2003.
Walton, Inga, "Clone", exhibition essay, July, 2002.
Walton, Inga, "I Wannabe Be A Star", exhibition essay, September, 2001.
Walton, Inga, "Of Two Minds", exhibition essay, April, 2001.
Walton, Inga, "Domestic Gods", exhibition essay & captions, January, 2000.

PUBLICATIONS

Blyth, Jenna, "Snap Freeze: Still Life Now", exhibition catalogue (20 May-11 November), Tarrawarra Museum of Art, Healesville, 2007, p.11-12, 46, 53, 59-60.
Bois de Chesne, Carole, Stuart, Rodney & Hock, Peter (Eds), Bois de Chesne: Top Art & Food- Melbourne, Bois de Chesne Design, Melbourne, 2005, p.25.
Crombie, Isobel (Ed.), 'Light Sensitive': Contemporary Australian Photography From the Loti Smorgon Fund, National Gallery of Victoria Publications, Melbourne, 2006, p.20, 86-87 & 108.
Curtis, Narelle (Ed.), "Art For Science", exhibition catalogue (26-28 July), Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI), Melbourne, 2007, p.29.
Curtis, Narelle (Ed.), "Art For Science", exhibition catalogue (21-23 July), Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI), Melbourne, 2005, p.29.
McCulloch, Alan, McCulloch, Susan & McCulloch-Childs, Emily (Eds), The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia Of Australian Art, Fourth Edition, Aus Art Editions/The Miegunyah Press, Melbourne, 2006, p.920.
Payes, Sonia R, Untitled. Portraits Of Australian Artists, (ed. Jenny Zimmer), Macmillan Art Publishing, Melbourne, 2007, p.21, 326-331.
[NB. Strong was responsible for the design of the entire book]
Walsh, Anne, "LOOK. Contemporary Australian Photography Since 1980" 2010 Macmillan Publishers
Walsh, John (Ed.), "Josephine Ulrick & Win Schubert Photography Award" exhibition catalogue, Gold Coast City Art Gallery, Surfer's Paradise, 7 May-19 June, 2005 [unpaginated].

COLLECTIONS

Artbank
National Gallery of Victoria (NGV).
Rockhampton Art Gallery, Queensland.
Skin Cancer Foundation, Carlton, Victoria.
Hotel Westin, Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria.
Intrapac, South Melbourne, Victoria.
Bryson Constructions, Sandringham, Victoria.
Private collections in Australia

AWARDS AND COMMISSIONS

2007 Finalist, Prometheus Visual Arts Award, Queensland.
2007 Finalist, William & Winifred Bowness Photography Prize, Victoria.
2007 Finalist, The Tenth Hutchins Art Prize, Tasmania.
2005 Finalist, Josephine Ulrick & Win Schubert Photography Award, Queensland.
2001 Bryson Constructions, Sandringham, Victoria.
2000 Hotel Westin, Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria.