Biography and Exhibition History
Marie Mitchell is a contemporary mixed media artist living in Western Australia’s Peel Region. Creative expression is vital to sustaining her inner self and has manifested in many forms over her career. Marie is always drawn back to fibre and textile as a medium for expressing her ideas. Employing a large variety of surface techniques, fabrics and stitch, Marie creates powerful, allegorical imagery, illustrating complex ideas in ways that are tangible to the viewer.
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Marie specialised in textiles and design at university and art college; moving on to share these skills with students over a three-decade teaching career. She feels very lucky to be able to focus full-time on creating since 2017.
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Sustainability is a cornerstone of Mare’s art practice; she uses many upcycled fabrics from clothing altering them with surface design techniques and free motion embroidery. She loves the tactile nature of materials and just handling them brings her joy. Her work often contains elements that extend beyond the frame or uneven edges that create shadow play. Marie especially likes the additional depth provided by shadows created by the combination of semi-transparent fabrics of different textures representing the delicate and ephemeral qualities found in nature.
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Her works have been exhibited nationally and internationally and are held in private collections in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom and United States. Marie supports conservation advocacy by donating a portion of all proceeds to national non-profit environmental organisations.
SELECTED JURIED EXHIBITIONS
2022
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Prize Winner, South Perth Emerging Artist Award, South Perth Community Hall, South Perth, WA
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Prize Winner, The Healing Power of Art: Resilience exhibition, Manhattan Arts International, NYC, NY, USA
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Finalist, 2022 Northern Beaches Environmental Art & Design Prize, Manley Art Gallery & Museum, Manly, NSW
2021
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10th International Biennial Mini Textile Art Exhibition “Scythia”, Ivano-Frankivs’k, Ukraine
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2nd International Biennial Micro Textile Art exhibition “Scythia’, Ivano-Frankivs’k, Ukraine
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Oceania: Distance and Diversity, SAQA Oceania Region Exhibition touring New Zealand & Australia to 2023, premiere Energy Events Centre, Rotorua, NZ
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Impressions of Oceania from Around the World, SAQA Virtual Exhibition, part of SAQA Conference ‘Oceans Apart Connected by Art
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6th Biennial Golden Textures Contemporary Art Quilt Exhibition, Central Goldfields Art Gallery, Maryborough, VIC
2020
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Australia Wide 7, Ozquilt Network Exhibition touring Australia & USA til 2022, premiere Belconnen Arts Centre, Belconnen, ACT
2019
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Forced to Flee, SAQA Global Exhibition touring USA & UK til 2022, premiere Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts, Melbourne, FL, USA
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Art Quilt Australia 2019, premiere National Wool Museum, Geelong, VIC and Yarra Ranges Regional Museum, Lilydale, Vic (2020)
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World Quilt Competition, premiere Mass Mutual Centre, Springfield, MA USA, touring USA til end 2019
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Stitched and Bound, Zig Zag Gallery, Kalamunda, WA
2018
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Australia Wide 6, Ozquilt Network Exhibition, premiere 76 Queen Street Gallery, Concord West, Sydney, NSW, touring Australia til 2020
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CrossXpollinatioN, Colac Ottway Performing Arts & Cultural Centre, Colac, VIC
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Bridges and Borders, AQC Challenge, premiere Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne, VIC, toured Australia & New Zealand to early 2019, Judges Choice Award
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6th Biennial Petite Miniature Textiles, Wangaratta Art Gallery, Wangaratta, VIC
2017
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Art Quilt Australia 2017, premiere Queen Victoria Art Gallery, Launceston, TAS and Yarra Ranges Regional Museum, Lilydale, VIC (2018)
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Stitched and Bound, Zig Zag Gallery, Kalamunda, WA
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2022 Encounters, Contemporary Art Spaces Mandurah, Mandurah, WA
2020 Hanging by a Thread, WAFTA exhibition, Holmes a Court Gallery @ no.10, West Perth, WA
2019 Now: 2019 Artsource Salon, Old Customs House, Fremantle, WA
2018 Galvinise Artsource Salon, Old Customs House, Fremantle, WA
Brooching the Subject #2, Timeless Textiles Gallery, Newcastle, NSW
2017 Eco Echo, Midland Junction Arts Centre, Midland, WA
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AWARDS
2022 First Prize, Sculpture/Textiles Award, South Perth Emerging Artist Award, South Perth, WA
Special Recognition Award, Healing Power of Art: Resilience Exhibition, NYC, NY, USA
Honorable Mention, Mandurah 9 x 5 Art Exhibition, Mandurah, WA
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2018 Judges Choice, Bridges and Borders Exhibition, Melbourne, VIC
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RESIDENCIES
2022 Artist-in-Residence, Contemporary Art Spaces Mandurah, Mandurah, WA
2018 WAFTA Artist-in-Residence at The Shopfront, North Metropolitan TAFE, Northbridge, WA
Northern Beaches Environmental Art and Design Exhibition,
Manly, NSW
photo credit: K. Roberts
Hanging by a Thread, West Perth, WA
photo credit: P. Forster
10th International Biennial Mini Textile Art Exhibition “Scythia”, Ivano-Frankivs’k, Ukraine
photo credit: L. Egorova
Australia Wide 7, Bunbury Museum & Heritage Centre, WA
photo credit: Museum Staff
Forced to Flee, SAQA Global Exhibition catalogue
photo credit: David Mitchell