FRIENDS OF THE GALLERY RESEARCH PROJECT 3

CARL OLAF PLATE (1909 – 1977) Born Perth, Western Australia  

“The Master of the Abstract “ (artist and art critic James Gleeson.)

Carl Plate is the son of Adolph Gustav Plate and brother of Margo Lewers (nee Plate) He explored in his paintings the visual language of the psyche and the imagination. His ambition was to go beyond the visual form and give shape to the interior landscapes of the mind.

Carl began painting by picking up his father’s brushes and paints left in the studio and copying his father’s landscape works. As a student he would head to the art rooms on sports day at Balmoral High and with sketch pad and pencils under his arm go out into the grounds to sit and draw the trees.  His early paintings contained plant forms, fish, insects and other forms of wildlife. His iconography became progressively more abstract throughout the  1940s as he pursued his ideal of representing the timeless essence of things.

Carl was invited by Betty O’Neill to exhibit at the Hungry Horse Gallery in Paddington in 1964.  He was a prolific painter and exhibited extensively in Sydney. He was one of the first resident artists at The Power Institute Studio at the Cite International des Arts, Paris and was seen as a leading Australian exponent of Abstract Expressionism, receiving eleven art awards between 1952 and1970.

Carl travelled widely like his father to such places as U.S.A, Mexico, U.K, Belgium France and Germany. He supported himself by working as a graphic designer and for a while operated Notanda Gallery at 41 Rowe St Sydney, ( The shop was used as the postal address for the Contemporary Art Society and the Gallery was a central meeting place for artists interested in Modernist philosophies)

Plate manipulated line and tone to explore the sensations beneath the surface. This is evident in Drawing for Anachronistic Segments (1962) Oil on paper, a sketch in readiness for the major painting Anachronistic Segments, also in our collection.

We chose this work because it represents a softer, less formal side of Carl’s practise. The palette is less tonally sombre and the expressive ink lines have a freshness and lyricism we found very attractive. We were fascinated by the relationship between the work of father and son and the impact of Modernism and abstraction on Carl’s work. We also think it’s interesting to look at Carl’s work in relationship to Margo and her use of colour and light. This research project has given us a broader insight into the collection and we found it very exciting to select work from the collection although Margo is still our favourite. 

Complied by Jean Roffey and Mireille Viviani, participants in The Friends of Penrith Regional Gallery & The Lewers Bequest Research project 2004

PENRITH REGIONAL GALLERY & THE LEWERS BEQUEST - 86 RIVER ROAD, EMU PLAINS NSW AUSTRALIA 2750
Phone: 02 4735 1100 / Fax: 02 4735 8334  / E-mail: gallery@penrith.nsw.gov.au
OPEN DAILY 10am - 5pm ADMISSION FREE