Montsalvat is proud to present a special exhibition highlighting the important contribution made by the Skipper family to Montsalvat’s creative development through a series of artworks drawn from the Montsalvat Permanent Collection, encompassing photography, painting, sculpture and metalwork.
A Family Legacy: Matcham, Myra and Damien Skipper - Works from the Montsalvat Permanent Collection. Temporary Exhibition from the Montsalvat Permanent Collection
WHERE | The Skipper Studio, Montsalvat
WHEN | 1st January to 21st June
Wilderness, Matcham Skipper, bronze plaque, 7.9 x 6.2cm, Matcham Skipper Collection, Montsalvat Permanent Collection
Matcham Skipper (1922 – 2011)
painter, sculptor, bronze-caster, potter, wrought iron craftsman, leadlight worker, stonemason, and jeweller
Myra Skipper (nee Gould) (1917 – 1994)
painter and jeweller
Matcham began painting with the Jorgensen Melbourne studio on Queen Street when he was not yet thirteen. Except for a short time when he lived and worked as a jeweller with his partner Myra Gould in a studio apartment in the city, he lived at Montsalvat from its beginnings in the mid-1930s. He was involved in the construction of virtually all of the buildings here.
With Myra, he concentrated for many years on producing remarkable jewellery. In later years he reverted to sculpture and bronze casting, and held classes in sculpture at Montsalvat.
Matcham was offered many commissions for his work and in his lifetime received a Harkness Fellowship, a Churchill Fellowship, and an Emeritus Award from the Australia Council.
Myra died in 1994, and her ashes were buried under an uncut quartz memorial stone adjacent to the Bluestone Chapel in the north-west corner of the property. Matcham died in 2011 and his ashes were then also buried alongside hers. They were survived by their three sons Adam, Damien and Marcus. Damien Skipper continues to live and work as an artist-in-residence at Montsalvat to this day.
Rocky Outcrop, Myra Skipper, 1988, oil on board, Matcham Skipper Collection, Montsalvat Permanent Collection
Frieze me perplexed, Damien Skipper, 2019, oil on board, 53 x 63cm, donated by Morag Fraser AM, Montsalvat Permanent Collection
Born in 1956, son of Matcham and Myra Skipper, Damien has lived at Montsalvat since he was very young. An artist and musician, he was offered a place at the Gallery School in Melbourne. Damien gained a Diploma of Fine Art from Preston Institute of Technology in 1981.
Damien’s career highlights include being a formative member of the rock music band ‘H Bomb Generation’. Damien’s art has been exhibited as part of group shows in various Melbourne galleries.
He has also held solo shows at Montsalvat, and was selected for the 'Reinvention: Creativity and Self identity' 2009 exhibition at the Bundoora Homestead Art Centre and was a finalist in the Nillumbik Prize 2013 and the Rick Amor Self Portrait Prize 2019.
Also on display all year round is a set of table and chairs designed and built as a commission by Matcham Skipper himself, generously donated to Montsalvat by the Fermanis family.
Additionally screening in the space are a selection of videos edited by Montsalvat resident artist Ric Nelson, highlighting Montsalvat’s rich history and those who have contributed to its development.
The Skipper Studio has a history almost as long as Montsalvat’s. In its time it has served as a garage, a store, cool room and, from the 1950s, as a studio, workshop and a lively part of the home of the renowned Skipper family, artists Matcham and Myra (Gould) Skipper, and their talented children, all of whom have lived, built, worked and made art in this beautiful corner of Montsalvat.
Above this space is the studio originally used by Montsalvat’s charismatic founder, Justus Jorgensen. Today, continuing tradition, the upstairs room is occupied by the Montsalvat Painting School, and downstairs, the Skipper Studio has been transformed again, into an exhibition space for work created by our Montsalvat artists. Here you will find stylistic continuity and innovation, a very Montsalvat combination.