Christine Abrahams Gallery

Christine Abrahams Gallery, first named Axiom, was a Melbourne gallery showing contemporary Australian art between 1980 and 2008.

Foundation

Christine Abrahams (5 March 1939 – 15 September 1994) graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Melbourne University in 1961[1] majoring in Fine Art. She was a guide at the National Gallery of Victoria for several years, then assisted Patrick McCaughey with research at 'Monash University,[2] and was a gallery director and major supporter of contemporary Australian art in Melbourne from the 1970s,[3] after her marriage to husband Daryl (born 1935), with whom she had two sons Guy and Damian.[4] Artist Lenton Parr said of Christine that she valued art "as a gift to the spirit and a source of pleasure and enlightenment."[5] She was Manager of Powell Street Gallery between 1976 and 1980 (the lessees were Melbourne solicitor Harry Curtis and a Caulfield doctor, David Rosenthal).

Axiom

Until 1982, Abrahams was Co-Director of Axiom Gallery, established in March 1980 at the address of the future Christine Abrahams Gallery, 27 Gipps Street Richmond, an inner, once-industrial, suburb of Melbourne. In the same precinct an increasing number of other commercial galleries, including the long-running Pinacotheca, Niagara Galleries, Stuart Gerstman, and Church Street Centre for Photography appeared.[6]

Of Axiom, critic and artist Robert Rooney remarked;

"Since opening in 1980, Axiom Gallery, Richmond, has continued to support the cause of modernist abstraction, the house style it inherited—along with artists such as Syd Ball, Fred Cress, Vic Mazjner—and Englishman John Walker, from the old Powell Street Gallery which was run by Axiom's three directors in the late 1970s."[7]

Axiom's opening show consisted of large abstract paintings by Sydney Ball, Fred Cress, John Walker and John Firth-Smith, selling at between $700 to $9500,[8] and was followed by a solo of works by photographer David Moore.[9][10] By 1982, when the gallery was renamed, Abrahams in an interview proudly detailed its record in supporting women artists;

"Eight out of 16 artists we've shown this year have been women. We don't choose them because they're women but because the work is really exciting."[2]

Axiom exhibitions;

In summing up the year 1980, critic Brigid Cole-Adams described Axiom as a "good more conventional gallery with interesting contemporary work including both abstract and new realist styles."[44]

In December 1982 Axiom gallery closed, and with Abrahams as director, was eponymously renamed the 'Christine Abrahams Gallery', reopening on 12 February 1983.[45] It showed a broad spectrum of visual arts by contemporary artists, including photography, by architects, and craftspeople including jewellers, and furniture makers.[46] Stuart Gerstman Gallery opened next door at number 29 in April 1983.[45][6][47]

The building had been converted in 1980 from a clothing factory by the architect of Abrahams' own 1982 Brighton residence,[48][49] Daryl Jackson, who preserved the industrial aesthetic of exposed trusses, bare concrete floors and steel roller-door. Jackson himself exhibited at the gallery in April 1984, showing drawings and models for a 'more humane' neo-industrial style.[50][51] Critic Robert Rooney described the renovation as "spacious and well-planned, and an ideal setting for...large paintings." The configuration of the gallery with a smaller space to the left of the main gallery allowed for shows of smaller 'works on paper' (usually drawings, photographs, or prints) simultaneously with shows usually of larger paintings or sculpture.

Exhibitions under the name 'Christine Abrahams Gallery'
  • 1983, February: Eight artists, including Ann Weir and Daniel Kogan[52]
  • 1983, to 24 March: Fiona Orr, sculpture (main gallery) and Wendy Stavrianos prints (side gallery)[53][54]
  • 1983, to 15 April: Genny Haasz, drawings and monoprints.[55]
  • 1983, 20 April to 12 May: Stephen Spurrier paintings, and Sandringham Series by Craig Gough[56]
  • 1983, to 2 June: Ann Thomson, collages and painting[57]
  • 1983, to 6 July: Fred Cress, paintings[58] and Marcus Shanahan, sculpture[59]
  • 1983, to 4 August: Sydney Ball paintings and drawings[60][61]
  • 1983, to 15 October: Loretta Quinn sculpture, Adrian Kerfoot painting[62][63]
  • 1983, to 26 October: Judy Silver, Paperworks and Constructions[64][65]
  • 1983, to 17 November: Elizabeth Gower paintings, and John Firth-Smith lithographs[66]
  • 1983, 22 November to 8 December: Clive Murray-White, John Ballany and Terry Setch[67][68][69]
  • 1983, to 24 December: Furniture by Dael Evans, Jane Joyce, Roger Wood and Randall Marsh[70]
  • 1984, to 12 April: Daryl Jackson, architectural drawings and John Gollings photographs of Jackson's architecture[71]
  • 1984, to 31 May: Akio Makigawa sculpture and Carlier Makigawa small jewellery/sculpture works[72][73][74]
  • 1984, 5 June to 25 June: Marion Borgelt paintings, Tom Fantl The Prague Suite[75][76]
  • 1984, from 14 July: Le Corbusier, etchings[77]
  • 1984, to 30 August: Victor Majzner, Daniel Kogan [78][79]
  • 1984, 5 September to 5 October: Bulun Bulun, bark paintings[80]
  • 1984, to 1 November: Lesley Dumbrell, paintings[81]
  • 1984, to 22 November: New Sculptors, New Sculpture, Loretta Quinn, Bruce Armstrong, Peter D. Cole, Ray Woolard, Lyn Plummer, Fiona Orr, Lenton Parr, Clive Murray-White, Hilary Mais[82]
  • 1984, to 20 December: Self-serve. Supermarket Style Fashion Fashion Design Council of Australia exhibition/sale of fashion[83][84]
  • 1984, to 27 December: Works on Paper group show[85]
  • 1985, February: Grant Mudford, photography[83][86]
  • 1985, March: Denise Green[87]
  • 1985, May: Helen Geier, paintings[88]
  • 1988, 26 September – 13 October: Mark Strizic, Melbourne 1954 – 1964
  • 1988, to 3 November: Maria Kuczynska, sculpture[89]
  • 1994, to 16 June: Grass fibre weavings from Ramingining[90]
  • 1994, to 11 August: Denise Green[91]
  • 1995, 14–31 August: Melbourne in the '60s – an exhibition of photographs by Mark Strizic
  • 1997, to 20 March: Marion Borgelt[92]
  • 2000, to October 12: Mandy Martin, Salvator Rosa Series III[93]

Closure

After Christine's death on 15 September 1994,[5] the gallery was operated by her son Guy Abrahams, who had been co-director since 1987.[94]

The gallery was closed after 28 years in November 2008.

Influence

Christine initiated the influential Australian Contemporary Art Fair (now Melbourne Art Fair)[95] and was a member of its organising committee in 1988, 1990 and 1992. She was on the board of the Fifth Australian Sculpture Triennial (1993) and was a member of the Visual Art Export Group of the Australia Council and the Craft Council of Victoria.

References
  1. "DEGREES AND DIPLOMAS CONFERRED 1961: 22nd FEBRUARY, 1961 BACHELOR OF ARTS" (PDF). Melbourne University Digitised Collections.
  2. Susan McCulloch, 'Axiom makes mark', The Age Tuesday 30 Nov 1982, p.21
  3. The Age Friday17 Oct 1975, p.22
  4. Brown, Jenny (13 February 2019). "Historic mid-century home on Beach Road, Beaumaris, is back on the market". Domain. Retrieved 30 August 2020.
  5. Parr, Lenton (October 1994). "Obituary". Art Monthly Australia. p. 40.
  6. The Age Tuesday 22 Mar 1983, p.27
  7. Robert Rooney, 'Six young moderns from Sydney,' in The Age, Wednesday, 24 February 1982, p.10
  8. Robert Rooney, 'Fascination out of obscurity', in The Age, Friday, 9 May 1980
  9. Advertisement, The Age, Saturday, 31 May 1980, p.20
  10. Tony Perry, 'Moore wins recognition,' in The Age, Monday, 23 Jun 1980, p.10
  11. Robert Rooney, 'A Colossus revisited,' in The Age, Thursday, 3 Jul 1980, p.10
  12. Robert Rooney, 'Rocky's abstracts go the distance,' The Age, Thursday, 24 July 1980, p.10
  13. Robert Rooney, 'Nomadic Hickey's new brush look,' The Age, Wednesday, 24 September 1980, p.10
  14. Advertisement, The Age, Saturday 13 December 1980, p.25
  15. The Age, Friday, 6 February 1981, p.35<ref>The Age, Wednesday, 4 February 1981, p.10
  16. Robert Rooney, 'Greeted by Eric Thake', in The Age, Wednesday, 11 February 1981, p.10
  17. Robert Rooney, 'Grandest quest in close-up', in The Age, Wednesday, 25 February 1981, p.10
  18. IThe Age, Friday, 6 March 1981, p.10
  19. Anthony Clarke, 'Images of Freund', in The Age, Thursday, 16 April 1981, p.10
  20. Tony Perry, 'The graphic master', in The Age, Wednesday, 20 May 1981, p.10
  21. Rita Erlich, 'Roy Churcher's view,' in The Age, Tuesday, 9 June 1981, p.10
  22. Robert Rooney, 'Community mural in the making,' The Age, Wednesday, 17 June 1981, p.10
  23. The Age, Tuesday, 16 June 1981, p.10
  24. The Age, Thursday, 2 July 1981, p.10
  25. Anthony Clarke, 'Pioneers of the pictorial,' in The Age, Friday, 3 July 1981, p.10
  26. Robert Rooney, 'Patterns of Arkley,' in The Age, Wednesday, 15 July 1981, p.10
  27. Robert Rooney, 'Between wall and window,' in The Age, Wednesday, 22 July 1981, p.10
  28. The Age, Thursday, 30 July 1981, p.10
  29. Advertisement, The Age, Saturday, 15 August 1981, p.26
  30. The Age, Tuesday, 18 August 1981, p.10
  31. Robert Rooney, 'The quaint, curious and the informative,' in The Age, Wednesday, 16 September 1981, p.10
  32. Jane McCredie, 'Adrift in the world of art,', in The Age, Wednesday, 14 October 1981, p.10
  33. Judy Newman, 'The surreal art of Smart,' in The Age, Tuesday, 3 November 1981, p.19
  34. Robert Rooney, 'Retreat to a timeless land,' in The Age, Wednesday, 4 November 1981, p.10
  35. The Age, Friday, 6 November 1981, p.10
  36. Robert Rooney, 'Crowded view of abstractions,' in The Age, Wednesday, 25 November 1981, p.10
  37. The Age, Wednesday, 10 February 1982, p.10
  38. Geoff Strong, 'Photography', in The Age, Monday, 22 March 1982, p.10
  39. Robert Rooney, 'Inviting Comparison', in The Age, Wednesday, 7 April 1982, p.10
  40. Robert Rooney, 'A new Italian connection with the old,' in The Age, Thursday, 17 June 1982, p.14
  41. Robert Rooney, The Age, Saturday, 19 June 1982, p.14
  42. The Age, Thursday, 24 June 1982, p.14
  43. The Age, Monday 29 Nov 1982, p.14
  44. Brigid Cole-Adams, 'Looking back to a year of browsing in art', in The Age, Tuesday, 20 January 1981, p. 17
  45. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 9 Feb 1983, p.14
  46. Jenny Zimmer, 'Access to the global village reflected in crafts,' The Age, Tuesday 2 Jan 1996, p.13
  47. The Age Monday 11 Apr 1983, p.14
  48. Where they had moved from their 1961 home in BeaumarisBrown, Jenny (13 February 2019). "Historic mid-century home on Beach Road, Beaumaris, is back on the market". Domain. Retrieved 30 August 2020.
  49. Greenwood, Helen, 'The Hide-Art', Plenty, vol. 5, November/January 1990 pp.42-44 (Abrahams House, Brighton, photographs by Ashley Evans).
  50. Murdoch, Anna (1984) 'Dealing with other people's truths'. In The Age Thursday 5 April 1984, p.14
  51. Holloway, Memory (1984) 'Stimulating architecture'. In The Age, Wednesday 28 March 1984, p.14.
  52. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 16 Feb 1983, p.14
  53. Memory Holloway, 'Sculpture as a way of repairing the self,' The Age Thursday 10 Mar 1983, p.14
  54. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 27 Apr 1983, p.14
  55. The Age Wednesday 6 Apr 1983, p.14
  56. The Age Friday 15 Apr 1983, p.14
  57. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday18 May 1983, p.14
  58. Memory Holloway, 'The mid-career back-room boys,' The Age Thursday 23 Jun 1983, p.14
  59. The Age Tuesday 28 Jun 1983, p.14
  60. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 13 Jul 1983, p.14
  61. Margaret Simons, 'Ball turns to the bush,' The Age Monday 18 Jul 1983, p.12
  62. Margaret Simons, The Age, Wednesday 28 Sep 1983, p.14
  63. The Age Monday 3 Oct 1983, p.14
  64. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 19 Oct 1983, p.14
  65. Anna Murdoch, ' 'Explosion' inspired by garden birds', The Age Thursday 20 Oct 1983, p.14
  66. Memory Holloway, The Age Wednesday 16 Nov 1983, p.14
  67. The Age Thursday 17 Nov 1983, p.14
  68. Memory Holloway, 'Northern perspectives as different as night and day,' The Age Wednesday 30 Nov 1983, p.14
  69. Anna Murdoch, 'Scottish painter sees the light,' The Age Tuesday 6 Dec 1983, p.14
  70. Norman Day, 'Of furniture and culture,' The Age Tuesday 13 Dec 1983, p.21
  71. Memory Holloway, 'Stinulating architecture,' The Age Wednesday 28 Mar 1984, p.14
  72. Sue Cramer, 'Understand the basic elements,' The Age, Friday 25 May 1984, p.14
  73. The Age Friday 18 May 1984, p.14
  74. Robyn Clarke, The Age Friday 25 May 1984, p.14
  75. The Age Tuesday 5 Jun 1984, p.14
  76. John Larkin 'Artist in search of a workplace,' interview with Tom Fantl, The Age Thursday 7 Jun 1984, p.14
  77. Advertisement, The Age Saturday 14 Jul 1984, p.170
  78. Sue Cramer, 'Raw rejection of formal skills,' The Age, Friday 10 Aug 1984, p.14
  79. The Age Thursday 16 Aug 1984, p.14
  80. Anna Murdoch, 'A long way from home, and rrark,' The Age Wednesday 5 Sep 1984, p.14
  81. Sue Cramer, 'An attempt to bring life back to the abstract,' The Age Monday 15 Oct 1984, p.16
  82. Sue Cramer, The Age Wednesday 14 Nov 1984, p.14
  83. The Age Tuesday 11 Dec 1984, p.14
  84. The Age Wednesday 12 Dec 1984, p.22
  85. Sue Cramer, ' 'Works on Paper' display,' The Age Thursday 6 Dec 1984, p.14
  86. Beatrice Faust, 'Mudford proves his art can stand alone,' The Age Wednesday 20 Feb 1985, p. 14
  87. Heather Kennedy, 'Green taken in by the US,' The Age, Saturday 9 Mar 1985, p.171
  88. Heather Kennedy, 'Artist taught in a hard school,' interview with Helen Geier The Age Saturday 18 May 1985, p.173
  89. 'Craft', Katrina Farrell, The Age, Thursday 27 Oct 1988, p.14
  90. Jenny Zimmer, 'A new opportunity to ponder aboriginal art,' The Age, Tuesday 24 May 1994, p.20
  91. Virginia Trioli, 'Green deeply colours a spiritual canvas, The Age Wednesday, 27 Jul 1994, p.22
  92. Robert Nelson, "Mystery in its compelling, minimalist glory," The Age Wednesday 05 Mar 1997, p.41
  93. Megan Backhouse, 'Art that belongs to the earth,' The Age, Monday 25 Sep 2000, p.44
  94. "Death of Christine Abrahams [gallery director]". Australian Prints + Printmaking. October 1994. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  95. "Established galleries featured at art fair". Australian Jewish News. 9 September 2008.

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