Jeweller, skater and artist Gerhard Herbst will hold his first solo exhibition at Noosa Regional Gallery in August.
For the international jeweller of 36 years, the world of art is a spirited career deviation. His Wear 2 From Here exhibition is part of a “personal investigation and exploration of the role and definition of contemporary jewellery moving forward”.
“As the oldest creative art form, our connection with jewellery is a seemingly inherent part of our own humanity,” Herbst says.
He was first attracted to jewellery creation and metal sculpture as a 15-year-old. But he says it’s his natural affinity as a skateboarder to “see lines within the context of a form” that continues to inspire his work.
“Skateboarders are natural visionaries – they can pick a line through a shape,” he says.
Herbst describes the works he presents in Wear 2 from Here as line sculptures, which take the form of bangles and neck pieces.
Forged from a single line of silver and copper wire, Herbst says, his pieces explore parallels between the continuous single line and the lineage of choices in our lives.
“The line defines a choice direction – a decision of the moment. In that moment the line is the future intent. When it is done, it is a path – a history documenting a series of decisions and choices.”
Herbst says his works are a metaphor for the series of interconnected choices and outcomes that shape the human experience.
Noosa Regional Gallery Director Michael Brennan says that presenting jewellery as a sculptural object asks the observer to look more closely at its aesthetic qualities.
“Herbst’s exhibition takes this shift from object of adornment to visual art installation a step further again.
“The artwork doesn’t begin and end on the plinth, but instead extends to the background walls, letting the works create an immersive environment that is bigger than the diminutive objects that create it,” Brennan says.
Wear 2 from Here is at Noosa Regional Gallery from August 2 to September 8, 2019. Entry to the Gallery is free. Visit the Gallery’s .
