Taking this metaphor of a reflection Bradford has created a new suite of ceramics and miniature paintings that engage with the many layers of memory and representation. The imagery of animals that appear in these new paintings - one of which one is coloured, something new for Bradford - is taken from the artist’s archive of found photographs of Haw Par Villa, a ‘cultural theme park’ in Singapore. The animals however are actually just another mirage, they are sculptures held within the park, part of the Villa’s attempt to create a ‘mirror’ of culture rather than a true representation.

The ceramic pieces mimic the rock forms also found in the backgrounds of the archival photographs from the park, they vary in size and colour as well as technique. Some are fired to stoneware and glazed while others remain in bisque, their colours ranging from cotton candy to rich blues and umber. Although treated as individual pieces what does bring them together is the way in which the colours act like a patina, a layer upon another layer, representing the many layers of time and memory that slip and slide against each other within these works.   

Moon on Water the exhibition, much like the proverb it is named after, is not about offering a definitive answer but rather creating a space to reflect on the many ways in which a time, a place and a memory can never truly be fixed.

Talia Smith

Jess Bradford (b. 1987, Singapore) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Sydney. Her work has been included in curated group shows at 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art, Delmar Gallery, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, Fairfield Museum & Gallery and Penrith Regional Gallery & The Lewers Bequest. Bradford holds an MFA by Research from Sydney College of the Arts, and was a recipient of the Australian Postgraduate Award. She has been a finalist in the Ramsay Art Prize, the Churchie Emerging Art Prize and the John Fries Memorial Prize. Upcoming public gallery group exhibitions include I will tell you my story, at UTS Gallery, and Keeping Score: Rhythms of Time, at Mosman Art Gallery.

Artwork images by Garry Trinh

Installation images by Docqment