Our first exhibition of 2013 - Claire Chatfield

SYNERGY AT CERES – first exhibitions of the New Year in our new space!

Synergy Gallery is pleased to announce its first official exhibition for 2013 Claire Chatfield – The Secret Life of Birds, which will kick start our exhibition program for 2013 in our small works gallery, in the restored century old Red Train at CERES environment park.

Opening next Thursday night, 24th January 5.30-7.30 and running till February 2nd, 2013.

CLAIRE CHATFIELD - The Secret Life of Birds – Exhibition 24 Jan-2 Feb 2013.

Claire Chatfield’s exhibition, The Secret Life of Birds, is series of ink and watercolour drawings from her trips around Australia.

With a few brief lines and splashes of colour, she aims to capture mood of the moment and the unique character of each bird. She uses humour and emotion to dissolve the separation between the natural world and viewer. Nature, she believes, reflects us back to ourselves: if we take care of her she will take care of us.

To minimise her footprint as an artist, all frames have been sourced from tip and op shops and up-cycled. For this reason she has chosen to exhibit at Synergy Gallery’s new home in the repurposed red rattler carriage at CERES Environment Park, surrounded by the natural environment and bird life of inner city Melbourne.

Claire has been studying Dynamic Drawing in Byron Bay and Melbourne since 2005 and has exhibited with the group several times.

Claire Chatfield was the People’s Choice winner in 2009’s Macushla Doyle Memorial Art Prize in Lismore in New South Whales and is studying Design at Lismore’s Southern Cross University.

Exhibition Opens: Thurday 24th Jan 5.30-7.30pm
Exhibition Dates: 24th Jan – 2nd Feb
Exhibition Hours: Wed-Sat 11-4pm
Address: Synergy at CERES small works gallery in the Red Train
Corner Roberts and Stewart Streets, East Brunswick.

Call Out for Artworks!

It's that time of year, our annual art auction fundraiser the Synergy Salon is on again! Its a fun event where we raise the spirits and hopefully some funds for the gallery. Best of all, you can pick up an small scale original artwork, by a local artist for a tiny price - and give a very unique gift this Xmas.



All artworks (up to ten, under A4 size) welcome. Its free to submit work if you become a member of Synergy Gallery for 2013, which is only $30 concession and $50 full. Commission is 30% on works sold and you set the starting prince (including commission) Bring your artwork down to Synergy at CERES (in the Red Train) ready to hang on Saturday 8th Dec, or Sunday 9th between 12-4pm.

Art Auction Saturday 15th December between 1-4pm

Making Ground - Ceramics students exhibition

We are happy to invite you to Making Ground which opens this Saturday, 17th November between 3-5pm  at our small works gallery in the Red Train at CERES environment park. 

This is the first proper exhibition we are to host in our new gallery space and we are delighted that this exhibition showcases the diverse work of the ceramics students from our partners the  Thornbury Women's Neighbourhood House including hand-built, turned, mosaic, functional and sculptural works.

Artworks will be from both the adults and the children's classes so it should be delightful!


It is through this partnership with TWNH and the support of the Ian Potter Foundation that we can bring you this exhibition.

Synergy at CERES - Red Train

It is very exciting to be able to say that Synergy at CERES - Small Works Gallery, in the Red Train is open and launched! :)

It is truly a beautiful new home and gallery and we are very pleased to get to know this beautiful 100 year old train carriage and discover it makes a wonderful, unique and interesting art space. Our launch was a great event and if you weren't able to be there, we hope you can visit soon and see it for yourself.

 

All sorts of exciting exhibitions, events and activities will follow in the next few months as we start to see what will evolve in our new home; in our Art Nouveau train carriage, in the midst of an environment park, surrounded by the laughter of children, kingfishers and the ring of the bell birds, its got to be pretty wonderful surely!

Synergy at CERES - Red Train

Just thought I would share a little sneak preview with you of the Red Train that will soon be our new gallery, at the moment we are busy restoring it. Here's a snap of the space as it is currently.

Synergy has a NEW HOME!

Good News!

All Aboard! ~ Synergy Gallery has a new home in the Red Train at CERES!

Announcement

Synergy Gallery is pleased to announce its newest incarnation: Synergy at CERES! After closing at the end of June – we have found a home. We are creating a unique new art space in the fabulous old Red Rattler Train at CERES environment park. Where we will still be in the heart of the community, just in East Brunswick, a mere leap across the creek from our old home.

Synergy at CERES will open to the public on the Saturday 20th October between 3-5pm and invites you to come along to celebrate. We can be found at the old Red Train, at CERES corner Roberts and Stewart Streets, Brunswick East.

We are delighted that Synergy Gallery will continue, albeit in a new location and incarnation. Synergy is also very pleased also to become part of the CERES community, which we hope to be part of for a long time to come. We look forward to a future of new artistic endeavors and creative possibilities.

Synergy is setting up an absolutely unique new art space in the historic and beautiful train, in the fantastic setting of CERES; complete with café next door, kids play area, markets, festivals, community groups - and all on the banks of the magnificent Merri Creek, amongst the Bell Birds, Kingfishers, bush land and gardens.

This is an adventurous new chapter for us and we invite you all to get on board!

Come along to the launch of Synergy at CERES, Saturday 20^th October 3-5pm.

Our New Address: Synergy at CERES, Red Train

CERES Environment Park

Corner Roberts and Stewart Streets

East Brunswick, 3057

Closure of Synergy Gallery after nearly 11 years in Northcote

Dear friends and supporters,

Synergy Gallery is very sad to announce the closure of Synergy Gallery aty 253 High Street Northcote, our home of nearly 11 years, since we opened on November 24th 2001 and brought with us a new lease on life for the area. As of the end of June 2012 Synergy will exist as a 'nomadic' gallery until we can find a more permanent home. If you have any offers or suggestions or want to contact us, we would love to hear from you at synergygallery @ gmail.com.

We would like to encourage you to stay in touch, keep up your membership and look out for us appearing near you soon.

Synergy Gallery would also like to thank you for all your generous support and keep interest over the years, you are what has made this community gallery so special!

Below is an outline of the circumstances that has lead to our closure, we know you feel as passionately about the arts as we do and hope you will join us to insist their support continues.

Till we meet again, farewell friends!
Much creativity to you all. x

***

Last day of Synergy Gallery 30th June 2012, at 253 High St Northcote
Photo Credit: Katie Roberts © 2012

Cuts in funding from re-current $10,000 from our local council to zero in 2011/12 have meant a serious struggle to gain support and survive. In 2012 our landlords decision to find a new tenant and increased rental costs have meant that even though we secured funding from the Ian Potter foundation in 2012 sadly we have had to close at the end of June 2012. We are a non-profit community run, volunteer staffed artist run gallery that starting in 2001. After 11 years we are now having to completely review our operations and rethink our structure, and find other income sources. Another local organisation may give us a temporary office, but we have no gallery any more. As a small community initiated gallery we contributed a huge amount to the community, we have shown thousands of artists work and over 200 exhibitions in nearly 11 years. We have done everything possible to improve the sustainability of our organisation but the facts are a non-profit community/volunteer gallery already contributes $100,000 of dollars to the economy and cultural life and NEEDS FUNDING to match the contribution we are making or the City of Darebin and Victoria will loose its cultural standing and valuable assets. Small organisations need to be funded as well as medium and large ones.  Funding applications need to be aimed at volunteer run organisations, not just ones with paid staff - or we can never climb the rungs of funding to afford paid staff. Volunteers need access to support, mentoring and professional skills to continue to build their capacity. There is no excuse - Darebin, Victoria and Australia can afford the arts, in fact our economy and society NEEDS the arts. The ARTS are NOT a luxury, they are a necessity and we will not stand by and watch it be dismantled!