Exhibits,

Anna Varendorff Bright Internal External

‘Bright Internal External’ (2016) is a new work by Anna Varendorff, presented as part of a new program presented by Bus Projects, in partnership with Mercer. The work responds specifically to the offices at Mercer, Collins St, Melbourne, and appears as two sculptures that offer unclear views onto an internal garden.

The works suggest surreal humor from the domestic formality of leggy handmade cabinetry within a formal office environment. They evoke painting and classical art references via the impressionistic effects of mottled glass over an obscured landscape. In a space of business, where art and domesticity may be secondary or not even relevant to peoples daily tasks, the surreal forms and apparent simplicity of the sculptures recall the personal and the anecdotal. They offer a moment of departure from their environment.

The work is a result of a consideration of the architectural details of the Mercer space – frosted glass walls and refined minimal architectural detailing - as well as the use of the space as a centre for meetings and functions for a large staff group, and the combination of post-minimal artworks and the very personal artwork of staff exhibited in close proximities.

Anna Varendorff has completed an MFA at Monash University, and has exhibited at ACCA as part of NEW16, at TCB Art Inc, Bus Projects, Craft Victoria, c3 Contemporary Art Space, the Victoria and Albert Museum, Anna Pappas Gallery, etc.

Varendorff’s structures offer up the opportunity to interact with, or call upon the viewer to observe perceptual shifts within the work. They employ the latency of the room, offering change when a body enters it and engages with the work. Her works are a space of opportunity, play and observation. She works sculpturally with brass, wood, light, sound and shadow.

Photography by Christo Crocker.