Adrian Lazzaro

Adrian Lazzaro’s artworks are expressive, with intense line work. Adrian draws beautifully. His subject matter is inspired by supenatural beings. Vampires, zombies, wrestlers, werewolves and otherworldly creatures are sensitively brought to life under Adrian’s deft hand.

Adrian Lazzaro, The haunted mask,  2011, dry point
Image courtesy of Arts Project Australia

Adrian's work reveals a deep engagement with what it means to be human. This was exemplified when Adrian's figurative works were included in the exhibition ‘Revealing the human’, curated by Professor Colin Rhodes. That great exhibition was accompanied by a fantastic symposium on art, intellectual disability and the role of the specialist studio.

Adrian was asked to speak at the Revealing the Human symposium. With playful language, aliteration and humour Adrian spoke of his own human nature and of his artistic ability as supernatural.

Artsworkers Christina Hayes & Bernadette Trench-Tiedemann
in coversation with artists Adrian Lazzaro and Jodie Noble

What followed, over the last three years, has been an ongoing discussion of what it is like to be supernatural in an every day sense... Because Adrian' family, like ours, has an affinity with the sea we talked a lot about that as well. Adrian wrote down for us a fishing tale told to him by his dad. It reminded us of stories of Selkies told to us by our father who is a former sailor.

For those who don't know, Selkies are supernatural creatures who are seals that can shed their skins and take on a human form on land. Since seals are one of Adrian's favourite animals and are potentially supernatural humans it didn't take long for us all to head to the Melbourne Zoo and undertake some research.

Esther, Adrian and Rebecca sketching away

The Deep Sea Seals were perfect life models

Waving to Christina behind the camera

Adrian with the immortal seals at Melbourne Zoo

Steven Perrette

It's October! You know what that means- the Melbourne Show is pretty much over. Love it or Hate it (who could?) the Melbourne Show is a highlight of the September calendar... With its show bags, epic rides, animal shows and country style competitions,  the Show captures the imaginations of young and old.

Steven Perrette is an artist completely enamored by the color, noise and frenetic energy of The Show.

Last year, when I (Christina) was curating Steven's Solo Show, I came across an amazing body of work that would consistently returned to this incredible subject. You can make an appointment to see for yourself in the Arts Project Australia Archives.

Anyway, it wasn't long after Steven's exhibition opened that Steven and The Sisters Hayes were off to the Ballarat Show! Steven is the show bag KING! He knows the best ones and is all about old school value. We were impressed... he even brought large shopping bags to haul his loot home. The thing is, Steven's love of the show is infectious. I think it is because Steven is generous. He gets show bags for other people- not just his friends and family either. One time I saw him give a show bag to an artist in the studio he'd barely exchanged two words with all year.

Why tell you all this? All will be revealed in less then two weeks!

Visiting the petting zoo

Christina and Steven with his show bag stash