PORTRAITS
2023, Airspace Projects, Marrickville
Exploring the connection between artist and subject, PORTRAITS is an exhibition spanning 23 portraits that displays Conway’s established drawing practice. In bringing these drawings together, the series both captures the individual character of each sitter and maps the connections between an intimate network of people.
In this body of work Conway invites her loved ones into the drawing studio, sharing her process with them and tending to the details and nuances of each pose by refining each composition to their most essential marks. Using observational sketches from each sitting, Conway then transcribes and reproduces the original drawings in a process that utilises graphite transfer paper, likening the quality of each finished drawing towards that of prints.
The installation of the work is considerate to the unique space of Airspace Gallery. Rails made from stained Tasmanian Oak dowel curve into and around the corners of the space, lifting the works away from the gallery walls. The round timber rails mimic the dark black timber in the bent-wood chair that can be seen in each portrait and also echo the bold line that Conway uses in her work.
The drawings hang side by side from silver bulldog clips. The proximity of each portrait to one another reflects the interpersonal relationships between each of her subjects. Hanging side by side are partners, family, friends and housemates mapping a select, intimate group of Conway’s wider social circle.
Images courtesy of Robin Hearfield and David Roche