Michael Doolan

Biography

Michael Doolan lives in Melbourne and is a Lecturer at Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney.

Doolan has held various solo exhibitions throughout Australia, most notably 'Once Upon a Time' (2010), Federation Square, Melbourne; 'Forever for Now' (2008), Depot Gallery, Sydney; 'For Now and For Ever' (2007), Karen Woodbury Gallery, Melbourne; 'Never EverLand' (2005), Academy Gallery, University of Tasmania, Launceston; 'Boo Who?' (2005), Karen Woodbury Gallery, Melbourne; and 'The Good, The Bad and The Cuddly' (2000), Faculty Gallery, Monash University, Melbourne.

He has also participated in numerous group exhibitions, including 'Korero', International Ceramics Biennale, Taipei, Taiwan; 'CLASH' (2010), Newcastle Region Art Gallery, Newcastle; McClelland Outdoor Sculpture Survey (2008), McClelland Art Gallery and Sculpture Park, Langwarrin, Victoria; 'Snap Freeze: Still Life Now' (2007), TarraWarra Museum of Art, Victoria; 'Strange Cargo: Contemporary art as a state of encounter', Newcastle Region Gallery and touring regional Australia.
Doolan's work has been documented and reviewed widely, both internationally and nationally in a variety of media including the recent publication, 'Crackle: Contemporary art from the middle of nowhere'. He has written for national and international contemporary art journals – 'Sculpture News', 'Artworld', 'Art and Text', 'Art and Australia', 'Monument', 'Art Monthly', 'Art Collector' – and for newspapers such as 'The Age', 'The Sunday Age', 'The Sydney Morning Herald', 'Jakarta Post' and 'The Australian'.

Doolan’s work features in many private collections, as well as in public collections both locally and abroad.

Research

Doolan's tableaux, recalling the gothic undertow of children's fairytales, aim to capture and reveal a key junction in an undisclosed narrative. The storyline may continue in any of several different and familiar directions; a turning point, that is ultimately left unresolved.

There is a deliberate intention with this work to prompt forgotten memories of childhood and question the way we perceive ourselves in the adult world, providing a new pathway for understanding how our childhood has impacted on and influences the way we behave as adults.

Recent Exhibitions

Korero, Taiwan International Ceramics Biennale, Yingge Museum, Taipei Taiwan, July–October 2010

Once Upon A Time, Federation Square, Melbourne, July–August 2010

Trans Ceramic Art 3rd World International Ceramics Biennale, Icheon Ceramics Museum, South Korea, April–June 2005

Strange Cargo: Contemporary Art as State of Encounter, Newcastle Regional Gallery, Tweed River Regional Gallery, Ipswich Art Gallery, Broken Hill City Art Gallery, Orange Regional Gallery, Bendigo Art Gallery, Wagga Wagga Art Gallery,
2006–07

Trajectory of Memories, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, July 2008–January 2009

McClelland International Sculpture Survey, McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park, Langwarrin, Victoria , November 2008–July 2009

Contemporary Australian Craft, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, Japan, Takaoka Art Museum, Japan, Museum of Modern Art, Shiga, Japan, 1999–2000

Delinquent Angel: Australian Contemporary Ceramics, Museum of International Ceramics, Faenza, Italy, touring Japan, Singapore and Australia,
1995–96

Research Supervision

Yeo Jin Park MFA, 'Aesthetics of art and nature through Christian view'

Awards & Grants

2009, Australia Council: Connections Residency
2005, Australia Council: Arts Development Grant
2002, Australia Council: London Studio Residency
1998, Sidney Myer International Ceramics Award
1996, Australian Postgraduate Scholarship
1995, 14th International Biennale, Ceramique d’Art Award (gold medal)
1995, Sidney Myer Fund Australia Day Award

Professional Memberships

Craft Victoria, Professional member, 2008–10