Bern Emmerichs is an established artist based in Melbourne, well known for her distinctive practice of painting on ceramic tiles. An avid researcher and with a keen interest in history, Emmerich’s work critiques the many stories that make up Australia’s history since colonisation. This includes a particular interest in early historic accounts of Van Diemen’s Land and switch to self-governing colony of Tasmania as the primary penal settlement in Australia. Each painting is highly detailed, using illustrative aesthetics coupled with humorous anecdotes to unravel the sometimes unsavoury truths and questionable myths that underpin these narratives.
Simultaneously subtle and overt, Emmerich’s work becomes a portrait of the figures that have forged our history, using anecdotal notes similar to how museological objects are annotated and classified for a directory. As such, Emmerich helps to unpack the meaning of their contributions, both as historical records and through objects of significance. Described as whimsical and sometimes sad, Emmerich’s style helps to humanise the forgotten tragedies that many individuals experienced during early colonisation. Tender and honest, each work becomes a storybook that delivers a personal take on our history, inviting the viewer to ‘read between the lines’.
Emmerich’s has been exhibiting nationally and internationally for over forty years. She studied art at Prahran College of Advanced Education and the Phillip Institute of Technology in Melbourne. Emmerich’s has work in all major collections nationally, including Parliament House Art Collection, Artbank, Powerhouse Museum, National Gallery of Victoria, Queensland Art Gallery, Art Gallery of Western Australia and National Gallery of Australia.
[photo of Bern Emmerichs courtesy of National Portrait Gallery]
Exhibitions
