Mel Douglas explores the potential and flexibility of glass as a material for drawing. In her words, “objects and drawings are often thought of as two separate entities. My works explore and interweave the creative possibilities of this liminal space, where the form is not just a support for drawing; but a three-dimensional drawing itself. Using the unique properties of the material and the rich potential of mark-making on and with glass, I am using line to inform, define and enable three-dimensional space”.
This exhibition includes the installation Tonal value (1-9) 2019, which contemplates how objects can occupy and trace lines in space and the tonal transformations made possible through the viscosity of glass. Moving from opaline to soft greys and through to black, Tonal value (1-9) also represents a considered process of engraved mark-making. Also included is the new work Perception of Depth 2022, which experiments with geometry and perspective and the relationship of space, line and plane to create a third space, implying an area in between.
Installation view, ‘Mel Douglas: Out of Line,’ UNSW Galleries, 2022.
Photograph: Jacquie Manning
Mel Douglas, Lumen I and Lumen II 2022. Private Collection.
Photograph: Jacquie Manning
Public Programs
Acknowledgements
Presented with the support of Canberra Glassworks where Mel Douglas is a continuing studio artist.
Image
Mel Douglas, Tonal value (1-9) 2019.
Image courtesy of the artist and Traver Gallery, Seattle