Sullivan+Strumpf Fine Art Sydney: 2006 Sherrie Knipe

In her August exhibition at Sullivan+Strumpf Fine Art, Sherrie Knipe will invite you to her very private world of the recycled, the resized and the remembered. It is a world where oversized teacups are made of carved wooden fish, where miniature bronze shopping trolleys roll on timber rounds, and caravans made of carved cutlery spell out the artist’s identity and allude to her childhood.

While the intricacy of each carved item is enough to engross most viewers, the titles for her works create further intrigue. “The selection of the kind of button that I would use for Button Up [below] was a considered one. I wanted a button that was very distinct, one that could not be mistaken for any other form. I also wanted one that was easy to carve; after all, I had a lot to make. I decided upon a button with two holes, and an elliptical split through the middle of the button as a decorative feature. I had had similar buttons on a summer blouse. When I had finished carving them, I began to drill the holes. As I proceeded, each button seemed to be staring back at me. The split had formed a mouth and into it, I was piercing eyes. As I built, I became aware that the work was informing, guiding the placement of buttons. It seemed that this anthropomorphic dimension in the work prompted an understanding of the work as becoming something beyond me."

Knipe is currently completing a Masters of Visual Arts (Sculpture) at Monash University, Melbourne. She has participated in numerous exhibitions throughout Queensland and Victoria, and her works are held in public and corporate collections nationally.