EXHIBITIONS
NAPIER WALLER ART PRIZE (2024)
WORK SHOWING: “The matter of which a thing can be made” (2024)
AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, Canberra, ACT, AUSTRALIA.
Running May 10 - October 13, Online: https://www.awm.gov.au/napier-waller-art-prize-hub/2024-napier-waller-art-prize#:~:text=An%20exhibition%20highlighting%20the%2017,May%20to%2013%20October%2C%202024.
By using the tea towel – which was used to wipe paint from brushes used on previous artworks – I am acknowledging my previous academic achievements and the path I took to get to this career within Defence. The use of textiles refers to women’s positions, the traditionally feminine act of sewing, the rationing of clothing during the Second World War, and the female war artists that appeared during this time. It also recognises the impact of rehabilitative embroidery during the First World War.
The subject, a surreal combination of portraits, acts as a kaleidoscopic insight into identity and the fluctuation of ideas surrounding selfhood. It uses images of unidentified personnel and my own portrait as reference. This suggests that, without those who came before, I would not be in the position I am today.
Image (LEFT): "The matter of which a thing can be made", 2024, 60 x 40cm, Cotton thread, acrylic and oil on cotton tea towel.
LA TROBE GRADUATE EXHIBITION (2022)
WORK SHOWING: “Tango. Sierra. Echo.” (2022)
PHYLLIS PALMER GALLERY, Flora Hill (Bendigo), VIC, AUSTRALIA.
Running November 25 - December 9
Tango. Sierra. Echo. consists of multiple pieces of works that span around the theme of the military. The position I am currently in with my partner being away on deployment is the foundation of my research and creative outcomes. However, throughout this, I have noticed that it isn’t just about myself.
Continuing my initial introspective investigation, the large-scale self-portrait painting addresses the state of going through deployment without being the one physically on deployment: the waiting, the emotions associated with missing your partner and the fear and anxieties of the unknown. I am confronted with how to maintain my individual self, having to face civilian challenges, and re-adjusting a routine to make it easier and more tolerable. My practice also comments on the roles of women within military relationships and recognises the ensuing hardships of such a position.
I use embroidery on cotton napkins to document archival images from three specific war periods - WWI, WWII and the Vietnam War. These materials and methods manifest traditional expectations of the woman. However, Tango. Sierra. Echo. confronts these ideas of patience, silence, and domestication by having them on an abstracted stained background and sitting alongside the portraits. The work seeks to reclaim the feminine, against the patriarchal values that undermine the female body and domestic space.
PARASITE EVE (2022)
ALTERNATING CURRENT ART SPACE, Windsor, VIC, AUSTRALIA.
Running July 22 - August 13, Gallery 2
Addressing themes surrounding dystopia and utopia, Parasite Eve plays into the apocalyptic narrative derived from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The series of paintings takes into consideration popular culture, historical and political aspects. With elements of Bradbury’s personal life coming through. Whilst expanding upon the exploration of psychological fears and anxieties encompassing ‘The End’ and the grinding halt that came to a pre-pandemic normalised lifestyle.
It is a visual comment on issues both past and present. Parasite Eve takes an expressive stab at the pandemic itself and the effects that it has had, not only on Nell Bradbury as the artist, but those around her and within the community from the year 2020 through to the present day.
Image (LEFT): "WHERE IS THE FIRE EXIT? / WE ONLY HAVE ONE MOTHERLAND", 2022, 130 x 100cm, Mixed Media on Plywood.
Polarities (2022)
ROOKIE, Bendigo, VIC
Running July 20 - September 24
Image (ABOVE): “WONDERFUL LIFE”, 2022, Mixed Media on Plywood