Kati Thamo’s exhibition is the result of an Artsource grant, awarded to enable her to travel and research the spectral past of her migrant Transylvanian parent’s homeland in 2010.
Thamo explained, “I grew up in the hot, flat coastal plain that is Perth, but my youth in the suburbs was infused with my migrant parents European background. I was especially captivated by the dark and quirky tales told about our Transylvanian homelands – stories of mountain forests, weeping deer and village life. An Artsource research grant enabled me to travel back to these almost mythic places and make tangible the backdrop for these intriguing family tales.”
She called the exhibition Chasing Shadows because, in part, she was chasing the shadows of the past and searching for traces of lives lived long ago. She has drawn together a range of references from these travels, layering her experiences over family histories and splicing in allusions to fable and folklore. Written excerpts from her travel journals have been incorporated into some prints, along with family letters and recorded stories. Thamo noted that “I’m interested in how our sense of self is created from the histories we have inherited and how our memories are in large part formed into narratives or partial narratives. This sequence of images gives these narratives some kind of allegorical shape, interlayering the personal and the cultural with larger historical themes.”
Most of these images were made using actual shadows. Thamo created small scenarios with cut-out figures backlit and revolving behind a cloth backdrop. The images were transferred onto solarplates and printed using multiplate intaglio printing techniques.
Kati Thamo’s evocative prints can be found in the collections of the Print Council of Australia, Native Title Tribunal, Banyule City Council, Charles Sturt University, Murdoch University, Charles Darwin University, Queensland University of Technology Art Museum, Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery, Gladstone Regional Art Gallery, Burnie Regional Art Gallery, City of Fremantle, St John of God Hospital, City of Wanneroo, Scotch College, City of Albany, Great Southern Regional College, City of Swan, City of Whitehorse, Grafton Regional Art Gallery, & Forbo Holdings, Switzerland
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- TURNER GALLERIES | showcasing contemporary art
at 470 WILLIAM STREET NORTHBRIDGE WESTERN AUSTRALIA 6003 - TURNER GALLERIES HAS NOW CLOSED.
This website is an archived record of the exhibitions and artwork shown at the gallery. - Turner Galleries acknowledges the Whadjuk Nyoongar people as the Traditional Owners of the lands and waters where Turner Galleries is situated, and pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
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