Growing up in an air force family Stewart lived a nomadic existence as a child. Throughout his adult life he has continued to travel and take photographs. This he described as an “overwhelming experience” having only seen their art in poor reproductions back in Australia. Always interested in the visual arts, on a trip to Europe in 1975 he visited the Jeu de Paume in Paris and saw the Impressionists for the first time. With a PhD in biological sciences from the Australian National University, and an impressive career in science and technology development, for Stewart to commit to making art was a late-life decision. Tony Stewart surfaced on the Canberra art scene in 2002 in two modest exhibitions in artist-run spaces. Not all artists emerge from art schools, and as artists increasingly cross over into other disciplines, there has been a steady flow in the other direction. Sonia Barron wrote in Australian Art Collector 2003: Tony Stewart, Untitled 2, November 2018, Linocut, 30 x 30 cm In phase 1 of my art making I gained some critical acknowledgement. Because of this group, I have begun to place works in exhibitions and have expanded my repertoire.Īrt practice description and biography Phase 1 I still haven’t explored the extent of my potential relationship with Megalo Print Studio.Īlso recently, I have done several more courses and joined a Thursday art group hosted by artist Jenny Manning, which I have found both inspiring and stimulating. More recently, I taught myself linocutting and joined a print making cooperative called Megalo in Canberra to learn how to print my works professionally. I basically stopped what I had been doing and for a long time engaged in what I thought of as mucking around, including going to basic courses with my partner Denise. The period was creative and immensely satisfying. For ten years, I became what I termed an accidental artist, but I was inspired by what I was doing and powered ahead without thinking more than necessary about the process. This is not meant to be overly philosophical, but I am interested in my own practice. You are more likely to be experimental and to seek out new directions. You can either accept the hiatus or you can seek out reasons and techniques to cope with change. You may be frustrated that things aren’t the way they used to be, but you also have the tools to analyse why. When things change, you may be more able to understand. And, you have barely enough time to make the work you are driven to create. While you may not pay much attention to your process when the flow is energetic, creative and satisfying. The benefits I see are that you are at least aware of the flow of your work and its direction. Tony Stewart, Untitled 1, November 2018, Linocut, 30 x 30 cm I naturally fit in to the former camp and because of this I tend to see some benefits, though not enough to justify any artist from changing their natural inclinations. With reference to art, some artists are interested in the process of how they make art and why, while others just get on with it. Except in biology, I thought occasionally the gung ho approach led to an indifference to statistical processes and sometimes to poor and even wrong analysis. This approach didn’t have any direct negative consequences. Most scientists, however, don’t give a hoot about the process or philosophy of science other than learning to conduct their work as a rigorous practice that passes muster under the peer review system. Indeed, I was interested in the philosophy of science and science practice. When I was involved in science (biology), I was very interested in the process of how science works. I don’t know how many artists consider the process of their art and their art practice and how many never reflect upon it. Pandemic Art Update 2020 - work in progress Preamble Breadtag Sagas ©: Author Tony, 1 September 2020
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