SOURC. MAKER SALUTE
Respect.
Olive Gill-Hille
Olive is an emerging artist in the functional art scene. Based locally, she is represented by Australia’s first art gallery dedicated to functional art - Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert in Sydney. Born into an artistic family (painter Murray Gill is her Dad), she’s carving out her own creative career (literally) in timber and stone.
“I’m very much inspired by classical sculpture, definitely the work of Brancusi, as well as other sculptors like Isamu Noguchi, Barbara Hepworth, Jean Arp… I like adopting their organic shapes and transforming them into functional pieces.”
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Untitled Burnt Work 1.
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Gush (Huon pine & Geelong limestone, 2018).
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Untitled Burnt Work 2.
What is functional art? Functional art is located in the space between furniture, practicality and sculptural art object. It’s a genre all of its own.
Why is it not widely known or appreciated in Australia? I’m not too sure exactly why it’s not part of our art landscape. It sits in-between design and the avant garde, so I think in the past we haven’t had galleries and institutions that support it or understand it. Usually people’s practices are pushed to be more art or functional. It’s something that has a really strong presence in Europe and the United States, and for whatever reason for a long time it just didn’t have support in Australia. However, that is now slowly changing.
What and where did you study, and over how many years? I moved to Melbourne from Perth when I was 18. I first studied Sculpture at the Victorian College of the Arts and finished that degree. Then I found I hadn’t learned the skills to make the things I wanted to make. I wanted to learn to use tools and understand materials better, so I then enrolled in an Associate Degree of Furniture Design at RMIT.
What is a typical day in the studio? That depends very much on what commissions or exhibitions I’ve got on. I could be drawing or painting and planning before moving on to glue-ups, carving with the angle grinders or chisels, using the chainsaw… plus, there’s a lot of sanding and applying finishes.
What pieces are you working on at the moment? My biggest focus at the moment is the solo show at Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert, which is scheduled for September of this year. For that I’m working on a number of large-scale wall pieces, as well as functional artworks and several small sculptural items. This will be the first time I’ve worked on a collection in its entirety. For this exhibition, the work is very autobiographical and includes reflections on the past couple of years. The materials I’ve used reference my working environment and are all West Australian native timbers.
How do you approach the start of a new piece? I always start with sketches and watercolours as a way of developing an initial shape. The process of physically making depends on what materials I start with and where it needs to end up and its end use.
What techniques do you employ? For carving, I use a variety of hand tools. I’m a big fan of the Arbortech range of carving tools (which is a company that started in WA) and Kutzall carving disks for angle grinders. I also use a scope of chisels and gauges for smaller works or for intricate details.
Do you have a palette you choose to work with? I work with the colours of stone or timber that are already there and often use the process of ebonising with a solution of iron and vinegar to blacken timbers. So I guess you could say that my palette is adopted from the natural environment, while also including blacks and muted lighter colours.
You’re now in the Sally Dan-Cuthbert Gallery in Sydney – congratulations – how did that come about? Yes, Sally’s gallery is one of the few really supporting functional art. She specialises in it, and represents really amazing functional artists from Australia. She had seen my work exhibited on the East Coast in Melbourne and Sydney at a few places and reached out to me. She’s been very supportive of me during the early part of my career, and I’m very fortunate to be having a solo show at the gallery later this year. I’m super excited about.
What are you inspired by? I’m very inspired by classical sculpture, definitely the work of Brancusi, as well as other sculptors like Isamu Noguchi, Barbara Hepworth, Jean Arp… I like adopting their organic shapes and transforming them into functional pieces. Some of the work is also obviously very representative of natural forms. It’s effected by my surroundings and the Australian landscape. Sometimes it’s just finding a particular bit of stone or timber, and working with what’s already there and gently modifying it.
Private commission (ebonised jarrah, 2021).
“What does considered living mean to you in terms of your practice? Olive: It’s being conscious of our natural environment and aiming to source ethical design. We should be making and buying with decades, if not centuries, in mind. The longevity of our surroundings should be in constant consideration.”
Has your art changed or deepened your appreciation for the landscapes of Western Australia? It was already there, but it’s definitely deepened it. And it’s encouraged me to travel more around our state and search for new shapes and forms.
Where do you source your materials and what do you look for? The sourcing of materials is a big part of my practice. I think anyone working with timber should be considering where it comes from and how using it impacts the environment. My process has quite a lot of waste through removal of material, so when I can I use ‘roadkill’ timber or trees that have already fallen or have been chopped down on farms. The history of the timber also becomes part of the narrative of the work, which is important to me.
“... you could say that my palette is adopted from the natural environment, while also including blacks and muted lighter colours. ”
What gets you most excited about your art? Every time someone likes the work I am sort of surprised and really pleased. When people smile or get excited about my art that is usually the most inspiring thing to me.
Can you tell us the most inspiring destination for inspiration? I was doing a lot of snorkelling over summer, so have been inspired by forms underneath the water surface, as well as the ones above. It’s a time where it’s hard to travel, so I’ve been enjoying trips to Rottnest, down to Denmark, Albany and Margaret River. Anywhere coastal for me right now, but this year I would also like to have a trip up north to visit Karijini.
Lastly, what does considered living mean to you in terms of your practice? It’s being conscious of our natural environment and aiming to source ethical design, we should be making and buying with decades, if not centuries, in mind. The longevity of our surroundings should be in constant consideration.
Please also list upcoming exhibitions or changes in your art practice… I’m currently in an exhibition at Craft Victoria called ‘Future Remains’, which is an exhibition highlighting the work of female woodworkers and runs over July and August. Covid permitting, September is a very busy month for me as I have work with Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert’s stall for Sydney Contemporary, then the opening of my solo show mid September, which runs for a month.
Figure 1 & 2 (sustainably grown Queensland paulownia, 2017).
Figure 1 & 2, developmental drawings.
South West Extension 2 (West Australian marri and ??? Donnybrook sandstone, ????).
South West Extension 2, developmental drawings.
South West Extension 1 (??????, 20??).
South West Extension 1, developmental drawings.
Fast facts.
Can’t beat the breakfast at … the Mount Street Breakfast Bar. Last big holiday in the state was Margaret River. Movie I last watched was Alien, a favourite. When shopping I can’t go past SSENSE for all my Carhartt workwear.
Favourite weekend escape is anywhere I can be in the ocean. Last addition to my playlist Magic by Kylie Minogue from her 2020 album Disco (listen below). Weekends are best when all the sanding is finished.
The artist: Olive Gill-Hille.
Getting personal.
Design hero. Changes often, and there are many. At the moment, I’m very inspired by the architecture of Oscar Niemeyer and Lina Bo Bardi. The furniture practice of Donald Judd and, as always, the sculptural works of Isamu Noguchi and the designs of Wendell Castle. Image: Noguchi working on the plaster original of “Mu,” 1950. Courtesy The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum.
Coveting any art/designer buys? A Studio Henry Wilson bronze surface sconce and a @stasev.stasev boob tube.
Favourite space. I would love to be able to visit the Kings Road House or Schindler House by architect Rudolph M Schindler in California. Like a lot of people, I think it’s my dream house. Although I don’t personally work in rectilinear forms, I have a great appreciation for that sort of design and often envision my works residing in spaces full of minimalist lines and straight edges.
Material obsession. Shou sugi ban, the Japanese technique of finishing timber with flames and burning the surface.
Following. @la_stleger, amazing miniature moving automata.
Watching + Listening. Podcasts while I’m hand sanding… Grounded with Louis Theroux, Design Matters with Debbie Millman, The Daily and WTF with Marc Maron.
Reading it. Right now I’m reading Motel Chronicles by Sam Shepard and I’ve just finished What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver.
If I were PM. I’d spend a lot more money on the arts industry.