THIS week I spoke with artist Apolinario (Pol) Cruz about the works he has included in the gallery’s current group exhibition, Away and his practice more broadly. Cruz is based on a sheep and cattle property just outside Bogan Gate - but it’s his travels to places as far flung as Madrid, Dunedoo and Amsterdam that have inspired the works in this exhibition.
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Lisa Loader: You have included paintings and sculptures in this exhibition - do you have a preferred art form?
Apolinario Pol: No, I do not have a preferred art form. I like working from painting to sculpting because they feed off one another, from tedious brush strokes and building layers of paint to create the images, to the tactile and sensuality of clay, found objects and other materials and putting them together. Also the gathering of materials takes me to places and leads to other discoveries.
LL: Do you have a favourite work in the exhibition?
AP: There are two favourite works in the exhibition. One is Restless Spirit because it successfully sums up my restlessness: physically, intellectually and spiritually and forever longing for some place. Two is To the Other Side - this piece came together so easily and so full of fantasy and almost fulfilling the need to see the other side wherever it is.
LL: Which artists continue to inspire you? What is it about their work that you respond to?
AP: The closest I could say, if there are artists that inspire me would be Vincent van Gogh, because of the romantic notion of the suffering artist and his beautiful paintings, I was moved to tears the first time I saw the originals at the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Another one is Isamu Noguchi the Japanese/American sculptor. I love the simplicity of his sculptures both on clay and stone. And if one can call writers as artists Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Annie Proulx and Rana Dasgupta help stimulate my imagination.
LL: How do you find the experience of working with a group of artists and exhibiting together?
AP: I find it very pleasant. Apart from having irregular meetings and lovely meals to go with it, we remain independent of each other. And, when we finally get together for the installation of our works it is always a pleasant surprise and revelation to see what we have achieved.
LL: What do you hope visitors will take away from this exhibition?
AP: I'd like the viewers to share my outlook in life, to share the vantage point from where I look at things. The images I create become free of me once I've finished them and I’d like the viewers to see and feel something that I have not seen nor felt.
LL: What can we expect from you and your work in coming times?
AP: I have just, as recently as two years ago, discovered the paint program on my laptop, and have since produced more than 300 doodles (drawings/paintings). This again has stimulated my imagination and broadened my palette. I am now slowly translating them to canvas and paint.
In other news: our current gallery two exhibition, Tim Miller’s High Places must close at 5pm on Sunday. Don’t miss the chance to see a selection of drawings and paintings of the region by this highly regarded Rockley based artist.
Away will be on display until Sunday, October 4.
Also on display at the gallery is the Kedumba Drawing Award 2015 until 15 November 2015.
The gallery is open every day from 9am to 5pm (except Christmas Day). Entry to exhibitions is free.
For more information contact gallery staff on 6393 8136 or visit the website www.org.nsw.gov.au
