SANDRA BARDAS
On the 27th of December 2007, Sandra Bardas, cofounder of the Appleton Street Studios died, aged 66.
To most of the people at Appleton Street she was just another artist, working hard on her practice when ever she could manage to get into her studio. She was often seen covered in charcoal or pastel, wearing an old pair of blue overalls with a bright red stripe down one side. She often wore this outfit with fake leopard fur ugg boots, which kept her feet warm in winter.
Outside of her studio Sandra Bardas was daughter of Victor and Loti Smorgon and married to David Bardas, with six children and ten grandchildren. She sat on the boards of the Royal Children's Hospital, Playbox and Malthouse theaters and the Centre for Contemporary Photography. In 2004 she was awarded the Order of Australia for more than thirty years of work with indigenous groups. Her philanthropic work and tireless activism reached far beyond her immediate community.
Sandra was a very accomplished artist and her page remains on the website just as Sandra remains part of the studios.
Below is some of her work.
Sandra Bardas - Box Series
I consider this series of works as paintings. for, although I've used materials such as charcoal and chalk that are often regarded as drawing implements, the level of finish and attention to the entire picture plane is more related to painting than drawing.
The subject matter refers to my concern about recent events concerning people seeking asylum in australia.
From the much lied about 'Children Overboard' issue in 2001, through the scandal of children in detention centres, to the issues still facing us today, one would have to be 'blind Freddy' to be unaware of some of these issues.
As the daughter of Jewish immigrants who came in the late 1920's who worked hard to make their way along with thousands of others, I have always been keenly aware of the injustices of this world. The issue of seeking asylum touched me deeply for although my people came as regular migrants, they too were fleeing oppression and looming war.
When people have seen some of this work in my studio, and asked me about the subject matter, i have thrown the question back at them and asked in what way the works speak to them?
The answers have been both obvious and unusually telling. As well as the asylum seeking issue, people relate the work to the holocaust, to the war torn world in general, to their own experiences in particular, and for one person, to the Housing Commission Flats!
You , the viewer, are also invited to draw your own conclusions.
Sandra Bardas
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