Jaki Middleton and David Lawrey are a Sydney based collaborative working with kinetic sculptures, video and performance to construct installations that incorporate motion, optical phenomena, miniaturisation and repetition. By appropriating iconic snippets of film and re-staging fragments of photography and history in their work, Jaki and David invite the audience to observe, breakdown and reconfigure familiar narratives.
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| Jaki Middleton and David Lawrey working in their home studio |
Their recent solo exhibitions include Open Sky at Gallery 9 Sydney in 2016 and Between Worlds at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery NSW in 2015. Recent group exhibitions include, Mind the Gap at Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre in 2014, Living in the Ruins of the Twentieth Century at UTS Gallery, Sydney in 2013; Time and Vision at the Bargehouse Gallery, London in 2012; and Otherworldly at the Museum of Arts and Design, New York in 2011, which subsequently toured to MUba – Eugène Leroy, Tourcoing, France in 2012.
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| Jaki Middleton and David Lawrey, The world's more interesting with you in it, 2009, video sculpture 40x60cm |
Jaki and David have undertaken residencies in Paris, London, Los Angeles and New York, and their work is held in public and private collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Wollongong Art Gallery and Macquarie Group. David Lawrey completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours at Sydney College of the Arts, The University of Sydney in 2003. Jaki Middleton completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours in 2002, and a Master of Visual Arts in 2008, both from Sydney College of the Arts, The University of Sydney. The artists are represented by Gallery 9, Sydney.
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| Jaki Middleton and David Lawrey, Time trap, 2015, kinetic sculpture, 150x270x200cm |
While at Gunyah we intend to develop the sculptural elements for a new series of wind-up kinetic artworks that repurpose the mechanics of old gramophones. With a single figure in each surrounded by a domestic scene, the project examines the tension between the common representation of 'the home' as comfort, safety and warmth – with other realities of anxiety, despair and unconscious desire. The series will be exhibited as part of the exhibition 'Dream Machines' at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery later in the year. We are really looking forward to this inclusive residency that will bring three generations of family together, intersecting creative work with contemplative time in nature, shared with our young children (2 and 4 years old) and two grandparents.
- Jaki and David
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Jaki Middleton and David Lawrey, Consolidated life, 2009, kinetic sculpture, 270x120x100cm
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You can see more of Jaki and David's work on their website wayback.net.au and gallery9.com.au
