Spirituality in Contemporary Australian Art.
The concept of "spirituality" conveys more than formal religious faith or belief - it relates to the sacred and transcendental dimensions of human consciousness and touches directly on the fundamental mystery which underlies the process of creation. Artists relate to this mystery in different ways - in religious ways, or non-doctrinal ways, or by human awareness, or with the conscious mind, or within rites of passage and transformation, or in archetypal mythologies from East and West.
This book is neither a history nor an overview but focuses on a selection of established and mid-career Australian artists - among them painters, sculptors, installation artists and practitioners of mixed media - who are incorporating spiritual elements and themes in their work. The result is fascinating because the individual perspectives are so diverse, encompassing Roman Catholic and Afro-Christianity, Aboriginal "dreamings", apocalyptic surrealism, archetypal "Goddess" imagery, alchemical symbolism, and Buddhist mysticism.
Featured artists include: James Gleeson, Kate Briscoe, Inga Hunter, John Coburn, William Ferguson, Rover Thomas, Mirlkitjungu Millie Skeen, Gloria Temarre Petyarre, Tim Johnson, Marion Borgelt, Anne Judell, Wendy Stavrianos, Sebastian di Mauro, Lyn Plummer and Ted Snell.
