Post date: Dec 11, 2013 12:41:42 PM
Great Barrier Reef becomes canvas for world's first underwater art gallery.
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA (DECEMBER 11, 2013)(TOURISM AND EVENTS QUEENSLAND) - You don't need an art history degree to appreciate this exhibition, but you will need an oxygen tank and a snorkel.
Swapping conservative curators for colourful coral, Queensland's Great Barrier Reef played host to an art exhibition with a difference when six reef-inspired pieces went on show four metres under the sea.The single-edition aluminum prints, by internationally renowned Queensland artist BJ Price, were viewed by divers and snorkellers at Reef Magic's Marine World platform on Moore Reef, about 50 kilometres and a 90 minute boat ride off the coast from Cairns.
A Queenslander born and bred, Mr Price, who specialises in abstract expressionist paintings, said the Great Barrier Reef had long served as his artistic muse and was the sole inspiration behind his growing body of work, which has appeared in exhibitions from New York to Sydney.
"Inspiration is a funny thing but I guess it comes back to the fact that all of my art has been inspired by the Great Barrier Reef and I to get people to be inspired themselves. I think if that happens, they can come up with innovative ways to address reef health issues," he said
"It's one thing to show art in beautiful galleries and in locations as nice as they are, but it's altogether completely different to bring that sort of art to the Great Barrier Reef. I think it's this idea of art inspired by nature being put back into the natural environment. It's just never been done before and the results really do speak for themselves, it is visually extraordinary the way that the light plays on those paintings and the way the environment seems to embrace the paintings, it's really quite extraordinary," he said.
For Jacqui O'Brien from Brisbane, this was her first time to the Great Barrier Reef and to experience the underwater art gallery was something special.
"I thought that the colours of the actual images really complemented the corals surrounding it, quiet a beautiful thing to see in the water, it was really nice, the reflections on it made it special as well," she said.
The works were produced in Australia using a printing process that infuses dyes into specially-coated aluminium.
The artist worked closely with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority(GBRMPA) to ensure the artworks would be a stunning addition to the beauty of the natural coral garden galleries, without impacting on the reef ecosystem. The exhibition is removed each day so it has no environmental implications.
Mr Price has also created a giant turtle sculpture emblazoned with his black and white painting 'Alpha', which will be moored above the exhibition, acting as a beacon for snorkellers and divers wanting to view the underwater gallery.