Russell Craig

Biography

DipAd Caulfield IT DipEd State Coll Vic FRMIT Tamarind Master Printer USA MVA Griff 

Craig's work has been exhibited widely both nationally and internationally, and is included in the collections of the Queensland Art Gallery, Darwin Museums and Art Galleries board - permanent collection, Australian Embassy art Collection, Vietnam; Central Academy of Fine Arts art collection, Beijing; Griffith University art collection and the Brisbane Civic Art Gallery and Museum collection, as well as a numerous regional galleries in Queensland. 

He is an art educator teaching as a Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at the Queensland College of Art, Griffith University. His teaching experience has covered tertiary undergraduate and post-graduate supervision. 

Craig commenced his art training in the early 1970's in Melbourne at the Caulfield Institute of Technology and a postgraduate fellowship year in painting at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Directly after his RMIT training he completed a postgraduate Diploma of Education at the State College of Victoria, Hawthorn. In the early 1980's he receive a Queensland Government SARAS postgraduate scholarship that enabled him to study a master printer qualification at the prestigious Tamarind Institute, University of New Mexico, USA. 
In 2003 he completed a Masters in Visual Art qualification at Griffith University.

Artist residencies in New Caledonia, China, Vietnam and Japan assisted in the research theme of 'cultural appropriation' and presenting solo exhibitions in Australia during this period. Over the past ten years he has visited Japan five times and as a result assisted in the several collaborative art & educational projects between Griffith University and various Japanese art universities. Craig's most recent solo exhibitions include Mana, held at the Brisbane Powerhouse in October 2009; Objects of Navigation, Fortyfivedownstairs Gallery, Melbourne, 2010 and Altered States, at the Redcliffe City Art Gallery in December, 2011. This latest exhibition is a survey show featuring prints and drawings completed over the past 30 years of his art practice. Many of his most recent works were inspired by trips to America, Morocco, France, Laos, Cambodia,Thailand and Japan. 

In October 2011, Craig was invited to participate in a residency with the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts (Geidai). At the conclusion of the residency, he exhibited his work in a group exhibition at the esprit GST sightseeing Art Project hosted by Geidai at the Sumida Riverside Gallery, Tokyo. 

  

2016 'Five to one'

Russell Craig

Five to One is an exhibition of charcoal drawings, surfboards inlaid with images, and large digital prints.

These works reflect on the beauty of our natural world as well as the mystery of the subconscious through hybrid images and marine forms designed to trigger the viewer’s imagination.

The work references the strange and poetic lyrics of the 1960s rock group The Doors. They inspired a generation with lyrics that evoked imaginings of the human psyche.

Image: In the time of coral reefs (detail) 2016 charcoal on Montval, 440 x 184cm

Wednesday, 22 June–Sunday, 3 July 2016

Opening Event: Thursday, 23 June 2016, 6–8

To be officially opened by The Hon. Matt Foley

RSVP 07 3735 6106 or qcagalleries@griffith.edu.au

Gallery opening hours

Wednesday–Saturday 10–4 Thursday 12–8 Monday/Tuesday Closed

View Catalogue

2015 'MIRROR IMAGE: PRINTS AND PLATES'

A group printmaking exhibition  curated  by Professor Ross Woodrow, Deputy Director of Postgraduate and research studies at the Queensland College of Art, Griffith University.  This group exhibition displays prints alongside their plates or "matrix"

  • 28 April – 13 June 2015
  • Gympie Regional Gallery
  • http://www.gympietimes.com.au/news/now-showing/2658130/

Mirror Image: Prints and Plates, reveals wood blocks, etchings and lithographs that are displayed with the block, plate or stone and includes  printmakers Judy Watson, Tim Mosely, Russell Craig, Carolyn McKenzie-Craig, David Jones, Glen Skien, Claudia Husband and Ryan Presley. 

View Catalogue

2015 'The Body Politic'

Contemporary artists in Australia investigate place,
identity, memory and history through the graphic image. This show is presented at the Crane Arts in Philadelphia USA http://www.cranearts.com/

  • Thursday 8 January – Tuesday 20 January 2015
  • Reception: Thursday, January 8, 2015, 6pm - 9pm
  • The Icebox
  • Wednesday - Saturday 12PM-6PM
  • Free & Open To The Public

Contemporary artists in Australia investigate place, identity, memory and history through the graphic image.

Co-curated by Richard Hricko and Amze Emmons.

In terms of the number of artists and scale of the works included, this is the one of the largest exhibitions of contemporary prints and drawings to be shipped to the United States from Australia.

The exhibition The Body Politic: Contemporary artists in Australia investigate place, identity, memory and history through the graphic image presents the work of seventeen Australian artists. Although most of these artists work across different mediums, all have taken a primary interest in using print or graphic mediums and the printed or drawn image is the focus of this exhibition. Nevertheless, variety is a hallmark of the selection made by Richard Hricko, during his visit to Australia in August 2014, for this exhibition he has co-curated with Amze Emmons. The works by the artists range from artist’s books to printed surfboards, with the majority of the work specifically produced or adapted for display in the massively scaled ICE Box Project Space at Crane Arts.

The artists represented are Staff, Adjuncts or Postgraduate students from Queensland College of Art, Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia and the exhibition has been supported by the Griffith Centre for Creative Arts Research. QCA is the oldest university-based art school in Australia and has developed a close relationship with Tyler School of Art, Temple University and the Crane Arts Centre in Philadelphia over the past decade.

The Artists are: Jennifer Andrews, Blair Coffey, Clare Cowley, Carolyn Craig, Russell Craig, Paul Eves, Evan Gardner, David Jones, Tim Mosley, Bill Platz, Ryan Presley, Jude Roberts, Michelle Roberts, Jenny Sanzaro-Nishimura, Glen Skien, Jonathan Tse and Judy Watson

Read the Body Politic essay here

(1) Beneath the Water Line – Surfboards 1,2,3 & 4

2014

installation, four surfboards

(each board 208.3 x 53 x 7cm)

drawings digitally composed and printed on fabric inlayed into the top deck of each surfboard.

(2) Undercurrent

2014

installation, digital prints on two scrolls of Hahnemuhle paper

two scrolls, each 1200 x 93cm

 

View work | View Catalogue 

2014 'Subterranean' 

Crane International Project Space (gallery 105),  Crane Art Centre, 1400 N. American Street, Philadelphia, USA.  An exhibition of large scale digital prints.  In collaboration with artists Glen Skien and Tim Mosely.  "Beneath the surface" is the overall title of this combined solo exhibition project.  13thFebruary to 6th March
View work | View Catalogue | View Poster

2013 'Slipstream'

Redlands Art Gallery, Cleveland. An exhibition presenting large scale drawings inspired by travels and the sea. 3rd November to 8th December
 View work

2011 'Altered States'

Redcliffe City Art Gallery. A survey exhibition presenting prints drawings and works on paper. 1st to 24th December
 View Catalogue

2011 'Tokyo Residency'

October 2011 Residency at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts
 View work

2010 'Objects of Navigation'

Fortyfivedownstairs Gallery, Melbourne. 28th September to 9th October 2010
 View work

2009 'Mana'

Brisbane Powerhouse 6th to 25th October 2009
 View work

© Copyright Russell Craig 2013