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Friday July 18, 2014 | by Lindsay von Hagn

OPENING: Caroline Ouellette explores memories through the senses in Australian exhibit “In Vitro”

UPDATED 7/29/14

“The pleasure of the senses comes back to me from my innocent childhood days…”, Caroline Ouellette begins to explain in her artist statement, referring to memories of her imagination and absorption in nature as a youth as her inspiration for her works in glass. A Canadian artist, Ouellette has been studying at the South Australian School of Art. She is also a graduate of Espace Verre in Montreal. Before moving to Australia for her studies, she and her husband, Patrick Primeau, owned Welmo Glass Studio in Ste-Julie, Canada.

Oullette's work is based on the artist's observations of the natural world, and her experience of it. Throughout life, as we create memories, our brains associate our experiences with sensory memories, which is why we can almost feel a gentle summer breeze, or smell a baking pie, or hear the notes of a song once sung to us as we reflect on past events. Likewise, a sight, scent, sound, or other experience may conjure the unexpected retrieval of a memory — almost forgotten, yet stored away in a filing cabinet in the back of our minds. Neuroscience has been able to determine that there is a link between our senses and memory development and retrieval to parts of the brain like the hippocampus and amygdala. Through art, such as Ouellette's work, this concept can be interpreted, represented, and evoked in numerous ways.

Ouellette is intrigued by this sense-memory connection, and has created much of her work based on observation, sensual reactions, and imagination. Her previous work in pate de verre, blown and flameworked glass has been inspired by a childlike wonder at the forces of nature and the power of sensory imagination. “In Vitro”, her solo exhibition at the South Australian School of Art Gallery opening on Monday, July 21th and showing through Friday, July 25th, 2014, features glass jars containing objects, encouraging viewers to exercise their senses, perhaps to recall or appreciate an event, whether it actually occurred or was once imagined.

The SASA Gallery is an exhibition space and research facility located on the campus of the University of South Australia that showcases artists and designers associated with the university’s School of Art, Architecture and Design. This division of UniSA offers undergraduate and graduate programs in glass, as well as other arts and crafts disciplines and history and theory. The Gallery also features publication and external scholar programs for writers and curators associated with the school. 


IF YOU GO:

Caroline Oullette
"In Vitro"
July 21st - 25th, 2014
SASA GALLERY
Kaurna Building, City West Campus, UniSA
Cnr Fenn Place & Hindley Street, Adelaide
sasagallery@unisa.edu.au
Website
 
EDITOR'S NOTE: Since the original post on July 18, the artist has provided us with more pictures of her work, which are now included.

Glass: The UrbanGlass Quarterly, a glossy art magazine published four times a year by UrbanGlass has provided a critical context to the most important artwork being done in the medium of glass for more than 40 years.