Image by Jeremy Crome
Laura Baker
Laura Baker is an Australian visual artist working in the medium of paper cutting.
Laura was born in the Central West region of NSW and completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the College of Fine Arts (now UNSW Art & Design). Laura spent several years living in Sydney and Melbourne whilst working in the independent book industry, before completing post-graduate studies in Arts & Cultural Management. She now lives in childhood hometown of Blayney NSW.
Starting with unmarked paper, Laura uses surgical cuts to explore the qualities, detail, and shape of the Australian landscape. Forms appear from the negative space as images are ‘drawn’ with the blade. A tension exists between the pull of metal through paper and the delicate strands left behind. This reflective process both imitates the larger, devastating cuts by human hand to the environment, and restores a humble product of such exploitation, the piece of paper, back to a remnant of what once was. The final pieces are as much as about the paper imagery, as the emptiness and the faint shadows cast beyond the work.
Education
2020 Masters of Commerce (Arts & Cultural Management), Deakin University
2014 Bachelor of Fine Arts (Drawing), University of New South Wales Art & Design
Solo Exhibitions
2023 Corrugated Town, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, Bathurst NSW
2023 Watch your step, Maitland Regional Art Gallery, Maitland NSW
2022 Ghost Gums, LEDA Gallery, Newcastle NSW
2022 Corrugated Town, Brunswick Street Gallery, Fitzroy VIC
Curatorial Work
2023 Shadowlands, Wayout Artspace, Kandos, NSW
Selected Group Exhibitions
2023 Regional Futures: Artists in Volatile Landscapes, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre, Casula NSW
2023 Quiet, Corner Store Gallery, Orange NSW
2023 Follow the Line, Lighthouse Arts, Newcastle NSW
2023 Shadowlands, Wayout Artspace, Kandos, NSW
2022 HERE/NOW, Orange Regional Gallery, Orange NSW
2022 Belubula, Platform Arts Hub, Blayney NSW
2022-3 While the World Waits, Arts OutWest Tour, NSW
2021 Textures of One, Platform Arts Hub, Blayney NSW
2021 Grayscale, Brunswick Street Gallery, Brunswick VIC
2021 HERE/NOW, Orange Regional Gallery, Orange NSW
2021 Small Works Art Prize 2020, Brunswick Street Gallery, Brunswick VIC
2020 HOME, The Corner Store Gallery, Orange NSW
2013 COFA Annual, UNSW Art & Design, Paddington NSW
2012 smart ARTS Festival, Pine Street Creative Arts Centre, Chippendale NSW
2011 New College Art Show, New College, Kensington NSW
Awards
2022 Regional Landscape Prize, Corner Store Gallery, Finalist
2021 The Gallerist’s Emerging Art Prize 2021, Highly Commended
2012 Tom Bass Sculpture Studio Scholarship
2011 New College Art Show Alumni Award
Other
2022 Judge, Textures of One Major Award, Platform Arts Hub, Blayney NSW