Sightlines, 2021
cold-worked float glass, timber
1350 x 800 x 1600
cold-worked float glass, timber
1350 x 800 x 1600
Photographs by Remi Siciliano.
Through tunnelling our focus, we erase the peripheral and centre our attention. Sightlines is a study of depth beyond boundaries, providing the viewer with a focal point for contemplation. Whilst neither landscape nor portraiture, both space and the self occupy a distance that is implied through tone and reflection. The work explores the material qualities of glass, playing with the way that glass can be both looked through and reflect a space back to the viewer.
Sightlines invites motion and stillness from its audience. Interacting with the work, the active audience navigates shifting sightlines. Once stationary, the resulting tunnel-like effect draws the viewer into an illusionary portal. The surfaces of glass promote interaction with one’s own reflection as if looking into a lifesize mirror, holding its audience in a space of quietude and using reflection to frame the inevitable relationship between the body and its surroundings.
The composition of colours and patterns in this work can be seen in nature around the world. The dusty, neutral colours are also iconic of the rural Australian landscape, and they reference the building blocks of urban structures: homes, businesses, walls, pathways. The frosted external texture of the internally shiny glass inspires a familiar feeling in the viewer which draws them towards calmness and contemplation.
FUSE GLASS PRIZE 2022
Sightlines was awarded the 2022 David Henshall Emerging Artist Prize, providing $2,500 cash and a professional development residency at JamFactory.
Judge Brian Parkes said of Bronte’s work, “It is very rare to see such superb attention to detail from an artist so early in their career. But it is so absolutely critical to do so if you are going to work with a precise, minimal formal language… this work is exquisitely executed and its bodily scale gives it a captivating presence in space.”
