Madeline Kidd

Madeline Kidd’s practice can be defined as the curating of contemporary artworks, representational or abstract, into real and pseudo-domestic settings. The sculptures, paintings, installations and theatrical designs that she produces are conceptualised as ‘set pieces’ or what is known as ‘costume sculpture’. Commonplace and familiar icons of interior decoration, such as paintings, furniture, floral arrangements, fruit plates, and abstract sculptures are appropriated and recreated in her work.

Kidd’s work as an art director for film and theatre has had a direct influence on her art practice. In 2016 she exhibited at the Lismore Regional Gallery alongside artist Masato Takasaka, where prints, mirror and shelf works combined to form Playroom, a continuation of Kidd’s work of domestic familiarity reinvented. Other recent exhibitions include Rose coloured glass, The Honeymoon Suite, Melbourne and a solo exhibition at Spring 1883, Sydney. She has curated several exhibitions including Sushichampagnepaintingsculpture, which situated artwork within a domestic space, another theme of her work.

Installation view

Pattern Making #1

Pattern Making #2

Pattern Making #3

Mirror with a fruit tree and other abstract shapes #2

Mirror with a fruit tree and other abstract shapes #4

Shelf with abstract shapes #1

Blue glass...

Fruit plate with wine glasses

Tea cups and wafers

Folly #1

Folly #2

Sculpture with window frame

Abstract painting with Triangles, Circles and Squares

Abstract painting #11

Abstract Painting with white dots

Sea view

Flower painting with pink background

Landscape with orange segments

Abstract sculpture in yellow pink purple and blue

Cruise Collection

Cocktails and straws

Madeline Kidd

Solo Exhibitions
2017 Pattern Making, Daine Singer, Melbourne
2016 Madeline Kidd and Masato Takasaka, Lismore Regional Gallery
2015 Spring 1883 at The Establishment, Sydney
2014 Painted Gardens, Daine Singer, Melbourne
2014 Decor8, Craft Victoria, Melbourne
2010 Cruise Collection, The Narrows, Melbourne
2005 High Life, Legge Gallery, Sydney
2004 Paintings, Legge Gallery, Sydney
2003 Crowd Pleasers, TCB inc. Art, Melbourne
2001 Mood Swings, Artspace 71, Canberra

Selected Group Exhibitions
2020 National Small Sculpture Prize, McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery
2016 Spring 1883 at The Hotel Windsor, Melbourne
2016 Rose coloured glass, The Honeymoon Suite, Melbourne
2014 Re-raising Consciousness, TCB, Melbourne
2014 Fin, Utopian Slumps, Melbourne
2014 Into the Mystic, Pierre Peeters Gallery, New Zealand
2014 The Design Files Open House, Melbourne
2014 Bus Projects Edition, Bus Projects, Melbourne
2014 Melbourne Art Fair at Cutler & Co, Melbourne
2014 Daine Singer at Spring 1883 Art Fair, The Hotel Windsor, Melbourne
2014 Sketches in the Rain, Art after hours, Melbourne Art Fair, Aesop, Melbourne
2014 Lifestyle Concept, Daine Singer, Melbourne
2014 Depthless Flatness, Incidents above a Bar, The Alderman, Melbourne
2014 Impromptu, Pierre Peeters Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand
2014 Industrial Estate, Woodcraft Mobiliar, Heidelberg West
2013 Pont, Plus One Gallery, Paris
2013 Third/Forth Melbourne artist-facilitated Biennial, Margaret Lawrence Gallery, Melbourne
2013 Sculpture Party, C3 Gallery, Melbourne
2012 Waitakaruru Summer Exhibition, Hamilton, New Zealand
2012 Planted! Mr Kitly, Melbourne
2012 Platform Fundraising Exhibition, Platform Contemporary Art Spaces, Melbourne
2011 Sushichampagnepaintinsculpture, Private House, Hardware St, Melbourne
2011 Painting Group, Milani Gallery, Brisbane
2011 House me within a geometric quality, Platform Contemporary Art Space, Melbourne
2011 Rock Solid, Pieces of Eight, Melbourne
2010 The Painting Group Show, Utopian Slumps, Melbourne
2010 Redlands Art Prize, Mosman Gallery, Sydney
2010 Sports Club Project, as part of the Next Wave Festival, Melbourne Cricket Ground
2010 Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood, Waterside Pavilion, Hobart
2010 dot, dot, dot, Peloton, Sydney; Lismore Regional Art Gallery, Lismore
2008 The fourth (second) Y2k Melbourne Biennial of Art (and Design), TCB inc. Art, Melbourne
2008 Revolving Doors, Uplands Gallery, Melbourne
2008 Informal Rituals, TCB inc. Art, Melbourne
2006 Picture this, Painting Alumni, Canberra School of Art Gallery, Canberra and VCA Gallery, Melbourne
2004 Mixed Business, Seventh Gallery, Melbourne
2004 Do something pretty while you can…TCB Art Inc, Melbourne
2004 Packsaddle, New England Regional Art Museum, Armadale, NSW
2004 The Melbourne Art Fair, Royal Melbourne Exhibition Building, Melbourne
2004 Brett Whitely Traveling Art Scholarship Exhibition, Brett Whitely Studio, Sydney
2003 If U were mine, Gallery Wren, Sydney; Manuka Contemporary Artspace, Canberra
2003 Linden St Kilda Centre for Contemporary Arts, Melbourne
2003 The Good Drawing Show, Leichardt Street Studios, Canberra
2002 Snap, Painting Department Showcase, Canberra School of Art Gallery
2002 Masters of the Universe, Manuka Contemporary Artspace, Canberra

Bibliography
2014 Abbott, B. ‘Madeline Kidd Decor8 Prints capture domestic idealism’, Desktop, May >>
2014 Jan Bryant ‘Painted Gardens’, catalogue essay, Daine Singer, Melbourne
2014 Lucy Feagins, ‘Painted Gardens’, The Design Files, 7 July 2014 >>
2014 Lisa Radford, ‘Aesthetic in the estate, three-dee printing instant coffee’, Industrial Estate catalogue essay
2014 Steven Rendall and Bryan Spier, Depthless Flatness, catalogue essay, Incidents above a Bar, Melbourne
2013 ‘The Print Index 2012 – 2013’ Gather and Fold, Melbourne, Double Days, Melbourne
2011 Penny Modra ‘Rock Solid’, The Age, 3 April 2011
2010 Dylan Rainforth, ‘Next Wave Risks All’, Artlink, Vol 30 No 3, 2010
2010 Michelle Griffin, ‘Footy to get the boot at the MCG’, The Age, April 13 2010
2010 Dan Rule, ‘Around the Galleries’, The Age, March 27 2010
2010 Claire Ulenberg, ‘Cruise Collection’, catalogue essay, The Narrows, Melbourne
2009 Greatest Hits (Eds.), Magazine, TCB inc. Art, Melbourne
2006 Waller, R. catalogue essay, ‘Picture this’, Canberra School of Art
2004 Chapman, C. review, ‘If U were mine’, Eyeline, no 53, 2004
2004 Easton, C. catalogue essay, ‘What sort of business do you think you are running here?’ Mixed Business, Seventh Gallery, Melbourne
2003 Anderson, P. review, ‘If U were mine’, The Weekend Australian, 6-7 September 2003
2003 Keaney, M. catalogue essay, ‘Uncle Andy or Greenberg’s Nieces’, If U were mine, Manuka Contemporary Artspace, Linden St Kilda Centre for Contemporary Arts, Melbourne
2002 Waller, R. catalogue essay, Snap, Canberra School of Art Gallery
2002 Cerebona, R. review, ‘Masters of the Universe’, The Canberra Times, July 25

Other projects
2012 Model Home, Un Magazine Issue 6.0
2011 Sushichampagnepaintinsculpture, Private House, Hardware St, Melbourne
2007 Finishing School , Natural Selection, Issue 3
2004 Do something pretty while you can…TCB Art Inc, Melbourne
2003 The Good Drawing Show, Leichardt Street Studios, Canberra

Grants and prizes
2020 Finalist, National Small Sculpture Prize, McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery
2004 Artist in Residence, St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne
2004 Finalist Brett Whitely Travelling Art Scholarship
2002 ArtsACT Emerging Artist Grant
2000 Eass Loan Acquisition Award, National School of Art, Canberra
1997 ANU Undergraduate Scholarship, National School of Art, Australia National University

Collections
ANU National Institute of the Arts, Canberra
Museum fur Gestaltung, Zurich, Switzerland
Private collections in Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, United Kingdom