#14 | Augusta Vinall Richardson

Augusta Vinall Richardson is a Melbourne based artist working with sheet and cast metals to make abstract composite sculpture. Each element has its own idiosyncratic form but, in a puzzle-like way, becomes part of a larger, modular assemblage. Her templates, maquettes and moulds are constructed out of cardboard, papier-mâché and tissue paper. These ephemeral materials are palpable in finished metal forms and surfaces, tracing the path of her process. Similarly, the hand-drawn irregularities of her templates are seen in metal silhouettes. Much emphasis is placed on individuating surface finishes, the application of various polishing and scratching techniques to sheet stainless steel and patinas to cast bronze.

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EXHIBITION INFO

The assemblage of my works, composed of separate, individual parts, reflects my philosophy: societies are formed through the coming together of distinct bodies—nature, buildings, animals, and people. As Ursula K. Le Guin said, “We need other people in order to be people.” Each element in my work holds equal importance, with no hierarchy, suggesting a dynamic, shifting system in constant motion. The modularity allows for the possibility of reorganisation, mirroring the volatility and unrest beneath hegemonic social structures.

The process begins with drawing shapes, like friends at a dinner party—exploring whether they connect or inspire. Repetition and redrawing become acts of problem-solving until the composition “makes sense.” The foundational shapes cradle the others, like a caregiver’s arms, supporting and holding space for them.

Exhibited in a bathroom—a space of utility and solitude—the works respond to notions of self-reflection. Fragmented images in mirrored stainless steel disrupt the singular focus on one’s reflection, refracting light and inviting multiplicity. Can we be many things at once? The title arises from drawing as both a literal reflection of thought and a process of connection, where individual shapes combine into a unified whole.

Courtesy the Artist and The Commercial.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Richardson lives and works in Melbourne. She received her Advanced Diploma of Textile Design and Technology at RMIT University, Melbourne in 2012, a Bachelor of Art (Fine Art), Expanded Studio Practice at RMIT University, Melbourne in 2015, a Bachelor of Visual Art majoring in Drawing and Print Media at VCA, Melbourne in 2017, a BFA with Honours at Monash University, Melbourne in 2019 and received her MFA from Monash University at Monash University, Melbourne in 2022. Selected solo exhibitions include Augusta Vinall Richardson: TEMPLATE / SKETCH, Caves (Melbourne, 2023) and Teeter, Connors Connors Gallery (Melbourne, 2021). Selected Group Exhibitions include the Melbourne Sculpture Biennale: The Burden of Objects, Villa Alba (Melbourne, 2024); Circles of dialogue, La Trobe Art Institute (Bendigo, 2023); Sculpture thinking thinking sculpture, co-curated by Richardson, Branching the Universe gallery (Melbourne, 2023); Graduate Exhibition, Monash University (Melbourne 2022); Essential Utility, curated by Richardson, AAAB Gallery (Melbourne, 2021); Sounds of Pacing, Connors Connors Gallery, (Melbourne, 2020); Graduate Exhibition, Monash University (Melbourne, 2019); Graduate Exhibition, Victorian College of the Arts (Melbourne, 2017); Turtle Dove, Verge Gallery (Sydney, 2017). She was a finalist of the Nillumbik Prize for Contemporary Art in 2023, was awarded the RTP Stipend Scholarship at Monash University from 2020-2022 and the Jubilee Honours Scholarship  at Monash University in 2019. Her work held in private collections across Australia and Hong Kong and is in the public collection of the Celine Art Project (France).

Richardson is represented by The Commercial, Sydney.

https://augustavrichardson.com/