The Industrial Design of Clement Meadmore: The Harris/Atkins Collection
Widely regarded as one of Australia’s most important sculptors of the twentieth century, Clement Meadmore is also acknowledged as a significant and pioneering figure within the history of Australian modernist design.
Featuring an extensive group of individual pieces from the 1950s and early 1960s, this exhibition highlights Meadmore’s highly distinctive approach to industrial design and his remarkable ability to manipulate the most basic, readily available materials—steel rod, cotton cord, glass, sheet metal, canvas and thin plywood—into functional, innovative and durable objects.
At a time when artists, architects and designers were determined to forge a new identity in post-war Australia, Meadmore’s elegant and inventive designs were highly influential, becoming an integral part of the contemporary homes designed by leading architects such as Robin Boyd, Neil Clerehan and Peter McIntyre.
Meticulously assembled by the artists Peter Atkins and Dana Harris over the past twenty-five years, this exemplary collection of Meadmore’s iconic chairs, tables and lighting is the most comprehensive collection of his industrial design in public or private hands. Presented for the first time in its entirety, the Harris/Atkins Collection provides a unique opportunity to survey the breadth and depth of Meadmore’s singular design language.
The Industrial Design of Clement Meadmore: The Harris/Atkins Collection is presented in conversation with SUPERsystems, a joint exhibition of new work by Melbourne-based artists Peter Atkins and Dana Harris who, like Meadmore, are inspired by early Bauhaus and De Stijl principles. Also on display is Systems and Structures featuring a selection of works from the TarraWarra Museum of Art collection by Australian artists who, like Atkins and Harris, employ patterns, geometry, modules and repetition in their creative practices.
Related events
SEE ALL
UPCOMING
Artists in Conversation:
Peter Atkins, Dana Harris and the legacies of modernism
- PAST
- 21 April 2024 | 2PM
SPECIAL EVENT
The TarraWarra Festival: Australian Chamber Orchestra 2024
- 4 May 2024 - 5 May 2024
UPCOMING
Melbourne Design Week 2024:
On Clement Meadmore's mid-century design
- 26 May 2024 | 2PM
SCHOOL HOLIDAY EVENT
School Holiday Workshop:
Geometric Body Movement
- PAST
- 9 April 2024 | 2PM
SLOW ART DAY at TarraWarra
- PAST
- 13 April 2024 | 11.30AM
Further information
The Industrial Design of Clement Meadmore: The Harris/Atkins Collection, installation view, TarraWarra Museum of Art, 2024
Rosalie Gascoigne, Club Colours 1983
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Gift of Eva Besen AO and Marc Besen AO.
Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program 2009
© Estate of Rosalie Gascoigne
Clement Meadmore, Leather Chair 1953
Harris/Atkins Collection
Robert Jacks, Red Painting 1968
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Gift of Eva Besen and Marc Besen AO 2001
Clement Meadmore, Rainbow Box c. 1970
Harris/Atkins Collection
Clement Meadmore, Reverse Cantilever Chair 1954
Harris/Atkins Collection
Hilarie Mais, Bay 2001
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Gift of Eva Besen AO and Marc Besen AO.
Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program 2012
© Hilarie Mais
Robert Owen, Soundings (Composition #4, #8, #16) 2012
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2013
Courtesy of the artist and ARC ONE Gallery
Lesley Dumbrell, Terreau 2008
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2008
Courtesy of the artist and Charles Nodrum Gallery
Peter Atkins, Dr. No (after Maurice Binder) 2020–23
Courtesy of the artist, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne and GAGprojects, Adelaide
Mark Galea
Lamp, willow, life and death 2007
Titanium, unbleached with parchment and mica 2007
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2007
Dana Harris, fancywork 2020–23
Courtesy of the artist
Callum Morton, Corner 2 2022–23
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2023
© Callum Morton
John Nixon
Polychrome Painting 2006
Polychrome Painting 2006
Purchased 2007
Clement Meadmore, Calyx Pendant Light 1954
Harris/Atkins Collection
Howard Arkley, Pauses (Interchronic) 1976
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2016
© The Estate of Howard Arkley. Courtesy Kalli Rolfe Contemporary Art
Robert Hunter, Untitled No. 1 1987
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Gift of Eva Besen and Marc Besen AO 2001
© J.L.S Hunter
Hilarie Mais, reflection/feather 2016
TarraWarra Museum of Art collection
Purchased 2017
© Hilarie Mais
Video: Non Studios https://www.instagram.com/_nonstudio/
