Spirit Faces: Anna-Wili Highfield’s First Show at Olsen Gruin Gallery NYC.

After a 10-plus year hiatus, Australian artist Anna-Wili Highfield has returned with a collection of mixed media sculptures. Titled ‘Spirit Faces’, the sculptures are currently being shown at Olsen Gallery’s New York City outpost, Olsen Gruin.

The show is Anna’s first fully conceived body of work in over a decade and follows on from the gallery’s calendar of other strong shows representing some pretty excellent Australian artists: Stephen Ormandy, George Byrne, Leila Jeffreys, and the super cool TV Moore.

Works in the show display Anna’s penchant for material imagination – while she has historically worked with layers of torn paper, these pieces are made up of luxury and natural materials like freshwater pearls, shells, feathers, onyx, and coral, and then fabrics like velvet, linen, and felt. Resting on minimalist iron plinths, the series is a menagerie of birds and butterflies, body parts, and self-portraits. Intended to draw the connection between human and animal, they’re more totemic friends that sharp talismans, touching on our shared traits and ever-present animal instincts.

‘Spirit Faces’ runs until March 6th, 2018 at Olsen Gruin.
30 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002.

[Images courtesy of Anna-Wili Highfield.]