SONIA LEBER & DAVID CHESWORTH

Both artists live and work in Melbourne, Australia
Artist website leberandchesworth.com
Represented by Fehily Contemporary, Melbourne

 

SOLO EXHIBITIONS AND COMMISSIONS

2014
Zaum Tractor, exhibition at Fehily Contemporary, Melbourne, Australia
2013
Zaum Tractor, Gridchinhall Art Centre, Moscow, Parallel event of the 5th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art, Russia
2012
The Way You Move Me, exhibition at Fehily Contemporary, Melbourne, Australia
Richter/Meinhof-Opera, performances at Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Space-Shifter, exhibition at Detached/MONA FOMA, Hobart, Australia
Oceanography/Peron Station, exhibition at CAST, Hobart, Australia (Chesworth)
All Who Occupy This Great Space, West Space, Melbourne (Chesworth with Katie Lee)
2011
We, The Masters, installation in City Square, Melbourne, commissioned by Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne
Space-Shifter, exhibition at Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Perth, Australia
2010

Richter/Meinhof-Opera, performances at Australian Centre for Contemporary Art,
Melbourne Festival, Australia
Field Formation, commission for AAMI Park, Melbourne, Australia

2009 Space-Shifter, exhibition at Conical, Melbourne, Australia
Rewards of Silence, commission for Port Arthur Prison Chapel, Australia
Landing Place, commission for Botany Bay National Park, Sydney, Australia

2008 Almost Always Everywhere Apparent, exhibition at Mildura Arts Centre, Australia
Dyad, shortlisted proposal for London Olympic Park bridges art commission (with Simeon Nelson), London, UK
Shrike, selected public art proposal for Adelaide City Council (with Alexander Knox), Adelaide, Australia

2007 Almost Always Everywhere Apparent, exhibition at Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Helen Macpherson Smith Commission, Melbourne, Australia
Oceanic Endless, public art commission for Cardinia Council (with Simeon Nelson), Melbourne, Australia

2006 Proximities: Local histories/Global entanglements, 2006 Commonwealth Games public art commission for William Barak Bridge (with Simeon Nelson), Melbourne, Australia

2004 The Gordon Assumption, installation in Gordon Reserve for Melbourne Festival Visual Arts Program, Melbourne, Australia
Cosmonaut, composition of multimedia opera, Melbourne International Arts Festival premiere, Melbourne

2003 The Persuaders, exhibition at Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne
5000 Calls, temporary installation along Shoemaker's Footbridge, organised by Cankarjev Dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia

2002 Polymerous, Sydney Olympic Park commission, Sydney, Australia
5000 Calls, temporary installation along Millennium Riverwalk, presented by Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff, Wales

2001 The Master's Voice, ACT Government public art commission, Canberra, Australia

2000 5000 Calls, Sydney Olympic Park public art commission, Sydney, Australia

 

 

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2014 19th Biennale of Sydney: You Imagine What You Desire, Biennale of Sydney, Australia
Animal Ark, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
Melbourne Art Fair Video Program, Melbourne, Australia
Screengrab6 International Media Arts Award, Pinnacles Gallery, Townsville, Australia (winner)

2013 Melbourne Now, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

Cooperation Territory, 16thLine Gallery and Makaronka Art Center, Rostov-on-Don, Russia

Sound Bites City, RMIT Gallery, Melbourne

Mix Tape 1980s, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (Chesworth)

2012 Spaced: Art Out of Place, Fremantle Arts Centre, Fremantle, Australia

Animal/Human, UQ Art Museum, Brisbane, Australia

The Social Life of Things, Faculty Gallery, Monash University, Melbourne

2011 Melbourne Prize for Urban Sculpture, finalist exhibition, Melbourne

Stealing the Senses, Govett-Brewster Gallery, New Plymouth, New Zealand

In camera and in public, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne

2008 Melbourne International Biennial of Exploratory Music, Melbourne

Klang und Raum, organised by Liquid Architecture, Melbourne

2007 Madrid Abierto, soundworks program, Madrid, Spain

2006 +Plus Factors, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne

2002 2002AD exhibition program, Adelaide University, Australia

2001 Sound Practice, Dartington College, Devon, UK

1999 Process Philosophies, First Iteration, Monash University, Melbourne

Totally Huge New Music Festival, Perth, Australia (Chesworth)

1998 Madrid Week of Experimental Cinema, Madrid, Spain (Leber)

1996 Flower Show, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne (Chesworth)

1995 Sound In Space, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (Leber)

1994 Earwitness: Excursions In Sound, curated by Sonia Leber, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art and other places, Melbourne (Leber)

Madrid Week of Experimental Cinema, Spain (Leber)

1993 Wit's End, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (Leber)

Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria (Chesworth)

Meridian, Xebec Hall, Kobe, Japan

1992 Experimenta National Tour, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane and other galleries (Leber)

1991 Oberhausen International Film Festival, Germany (Leber)

Sound Culture, Performance Space, Sydney (Chesworth)

Aurora Australis, Presentation House Gallery, Vancouver; Winnipeg Art Gallery; Nickle Arts Museum, Calgary; Windsor Art Gallery, Ontario, Canada (Leber)

1989 Australian Perspecta, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney (Chesworth, also Leber)

 

 

 

AWARDS

2014 Gold Coast Art Prize, winner
2014 Screengrab6 International Media Arts Award, winner

2011 Melbourne Prize for Urban Sculpture, finalist

2007 Helen Macpherson Smith Commission, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Australia

2006 Australian Classical Music Awards, Instrumental Work of the Year for Panopticon (Chesworth)

2002 National Association for Women in Construction (NAWIC), Outstanding Achievement in Design for The Master's Voice (Leber)

2000 Age Performing Arts Award, for The Two Executioners (Chesworth and Horton)

NAWIC, Outstanding Achievement in Design for 5000 Calls (Leber)

Green Room Awards, Best Music for Life After George (Chesworth)

1997 Churchill Fellowship (Chesworth)

1994 International Paris Rostrum, Australian representative, Paris (Chesworth)

ARIA Awards, Best Classical CD nomination for Exotica Suite (Chesworth)

ATOM Awards, Most Innovative Film for Insatiable (Chesworth)

ATOM Awards, finalist for Earwitness (Leber)

1993 Prix Ars Electronica, Honorary Mention for Southgate, Linz, Austria (Chesworth)

1991 Oberhausen International Film Festival, History Takes Place in competition, Germany (Leber)

 

 

GRANTS & RESIDENCIES

2015 VicArts Grant, Arts Victoria
2014 Presentation Grant, Australia Council

2013 New Work grant, Australia Council

2013 International Cultural Exchange grant, Arts Victoria

2012 Arts Development grant, Australia Council

2012 Arts Development grant, Arts Victoria

2011 IASKA/Spaced residency

Touring Grant, Australia Council

2010 Project Grant, Art Victoria

 

 

2009 Inter-Arts Residency, Australia Council

New Work grant, Australia Council

Creative Development grant, Arts Victoria

2007 Project Fellowship, Australia Council

2007 DFAT Travel Grant, Australian Government

2004 Project Grant, Art Victoria

2003 Travel Grant, Arts Victoria

International Touring Grant, Arts Victoria

2002 Presentation Grant, Arts Victoria

2001 DFAT Travel Grant, Australian Government,

Touring Grant, Playing Australia

Travel Grant, Australia Council

 

 

 

SHORT BIBLIOGRAPHY

2014 Robert Nelson, 'Zaum Tractor: Diving Into a Brave New World', The Age, Melbourne, 5 February, 2014

Janelle Carrigan, 'Sydney Biennale', The New York Times, 8 April, 2014

Toni Ross, 19th Biennale of Sydney, Artforum, New York, Summer 2014

Anthony Byrt, 'Water's Edge', Artforum, 24 March, 2014

Dan Rule, 'In The Galleries', The Age, Melbourne, 8 February, 2014
Dylan Rainforth, ‘Around The Galleries’, The Age, Melbourne, 29 January, 2014
Andrew Taylor and Fiona Gruber, ‘Biennale artists Sonia Leber and David Chesworth use their art…’ Sydney Morning Herald, 13 March, 2014

2013 Dylan Rainforth, 'David Chesworth and Sonia Leber' (artist feature), Art Guide Australia, Issue 85, Sep, 2013

Max Delany, 'Metro-Cosmo-Polis' in Melbourne Now catalogue, National Gallery of Victoria, 2013

Simon Maidment, 'Memory and Modernity' in Melbourne Now catalogue, National Gallery of Victoria, 2013

2012 Dan Rule, ‘You Herd it Here First’, The Age, Melbourne, March 7, 2012

Sarah Miller, 'The Artist in Residence', RealTime No.108 April 2012

Jared Davis, 'Circle Work' in Spaced: Art Out of Place exhibition catalogue, IASKA, Perth, 2012

Helen Hughes, 'All Who Occupy This Great Space' catalogue essay, West Space, 2012

2011 John Hurrell, 'Immersing the Body in Art and Architecture', EyeContact, New Zealand, April 2011

Melbourne Prize for Urban Sculpture, exhibition catalogue, 2011

'In Camera and in Public', exhibition catalogue, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne, 2011

2010 Fiona Gruber, 'Terrorists on the Opera Stage', The Australian, 14 October, 2010

Kylie Northover, 'Terrorist Art', The Age, 13 October, 2010

Cameron Woodhead, 'An erudite, disorienting interrogation of art's process', The Age, 19 October, 2010

2009 Chris Reid, 'Mind-reading in the 21st Century', RealTime Magazine No. 92, Sydney, August 2009

Jared Davis, 'Review: Space-Shifter', un Magazine 3.2, December 2009

2008 Nikos Papastergiadis, 'Confined Abyss', in Almost Always Everywhere Apparent catalogue, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2008

Juliana Engberg, introduction in Almost Always Everywhere Apparent catalogue, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2008

Jorge Diez, ed, Madrid Abierto 2004-2008, Associacion Cultural Madrid Abierto, 2008

 

 

 

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

2014 Robert Nelson, 'Zaum Tractor: Diving Into a Brave New World', The Age, Melbourne, 5 February, 2014

Janelle Carrigan, 'Sydney Biennale', The New York Times, 8 April, 2014

Toni Ross, 19th Biennale of Sydney, Artforum, New York, Summer 2014

Anthony Byrt, 'Water's Edge', Artforum, 24 March, 2014

Dan Rule, 'In The Galleries', The Age, Melbourne, 8 February, 2014
Dylan Rainforth, ‘Around The Galleries’, The Age, Melbourne, 29 January, 2014
Andrew Taylor and Fiona Gruber, ‘Biennale artists Sonia Leber and David Chesworth use their art…’ Sydney Morning Herald, 13 March, 2014

2013 Dylan Rainforth, 'David Chesworth and Sonia Leber' (artist feature), Art Guide Australia, Issue 85, Sep, 2013

Max Delany, 'Metro-Cosmo-Polis' in Melbourne Now catalogue, National Gallery of Victoria, 2013

Simon Maidment, 'Memory and Modernity' in Melbourne Now catalogue, National Gallery of Victoria, 2013

2012 Dan Rule, ‘You Herd it Here First’, The Age, Melbourne, March 7, 2012

Sarah Miller, 'The Artist in Residence', RealTime No.108 April 2012

Jared Davis, 'Circle Work' in Spaced: Art Out of Place exhibition catalogue, IASKA, Perth, 2012

Helen Hughes, 'All Who Occupy This Great Space' catalogue essay, West Space, 2012

Gavin Findlay, 'The Sweet Music of Art-Driven Tasmania', RealTime Magazine No.108 April 2012

Darren Jorgensen, Spaced review, The West Australian, 25 Feb 2012

2011 John Hurrell, 'Immersing the Body in Art and Architecture', EyeContact, New Zealand, April 2011

Melbourne Prize for Urban Sculpture, exhibition catalogue, 2011

'In Camera and in Public', exhibition catalogue, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne, 2011

2010 Fiona Gruber, 'Terrorists on the Opera Stage', The Australian, 14 October, 2010

Kylie Northover, 'Terrorist Art', The Age, 13 October, 2010

Cameron Woodhead, 'An erudite, disorienting interrogation of art's process', The Age, 19 October, 2010

2009 Chris Reid, 'Mind-reading in the 21st Century', RealTime Magazine No. 92, Sydney, August 2009

Jared Davis, 'Review: Space-Shifter', un Magazine 3.2, December 2009

Dan Rule, 'Around the Galleries', The Age, Melbourne, 6 June 2009

Linda Kouvaras, 'Toilets, Tears and Transcendence' in Transforming Cultures, Vol 4, No 1, UTS, Sydney

Jonathan Marshall, 'Flatness, Ornamentality and the Sonic Image..’, in Sound Scripts 2, Perth, 2009

2008 Nikos Papastergiadis, 'Confined Abyss', in Almost Always Everywhere Apparent catalogue, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2008

Juliana Engberg, introduction in Almost Always Everywhere Apparent catalogue, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2008

Jorge Diez, ed, Madrid Abierto 2004-2008, Associacion Cultural Madrid Abierto, 2008

David Bennett, Sounding Postmodernism: Sampling Australian Composers, Sound-artists and Music Critics, Australian Music Centre, Sydney, 2008

Jennifer Brown, 'Blitz: Discursive bombardments in "the war on terror"', PhD dissertation, Southern Cross University, NSW, 2008

2007 Robert Nelson, 'The Year in Review: Visual Art', The Age, Melbourne, 26 December 2007

Amy Marjoram, 'Between Heaven and Hell', RealTime Magazine No. 81, October 2007

Robert Nelson, 'In claustrophobia and freeze-frame movement meaning lies between the gaps', The Age, Melbourne, 22 August 2007

Martin Ball, 'Now see, hear', The Age, Melbourne, 18 August 2007

Fiona Scott-Norman, 'Giving Voice to Their Art', The Age, Melbourne, 10 August 2007

2006 Jon Dale, 'Once Upon a Time in Melbourne' in The Wire no 272, London, October 2006

Juliana Engberg, 'My Chicken is Missing' in +Plus Factors exhibition catalogue, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2006

2005 Darren Tofts, Interzone: Media Arts in Australia, Craftsman House, 2005

Matthew Westwood, 'Super Sonic Trespasser' in The Australian, August 4 2005

Sunanda Creagh, 'Reviving the Crackle...', in The Sydney Morning Herald, July 27 2005

2004 Edward Colless, 'Lucid Screams to Stir the Nation's Soul' in The Australian, October 25 2004

Peter King, '"I'll Drown My Book": the Caves of The Gordon Assumption', Melbourne International Arts Festival, Visual Arts Program catalogue, Melbourne 2004

A Ivanova, A Cavallaro, 'Unnatural Selection', Ars Electronica exhibition catalogue, Novamedia, 2004

Jonathan Marshall, 'The voice in and beyond history' in Real Time, No 64, Sydney, December 2004

Ross Gibson, 'Sounds Like Art' in lab.3000 Digital Design Biennale catalogue, Melbourne 2004

Jo Roberts, 'For your convenience…' in The Age, Melbourne, October 5 2004

Jeff Kahn, 'Under the cover of night' in Real Time No. 64, Sydney, December 2004

John Slavin, 'Emotions Soar to the Stars' in The Age, Melbourne, October 23 2004

Daniel Palmer, 'Seeing voices' in Real Time No. 64, Sydney, December 2004

'Best of the Fest' in The Age, October 3 2004

Simon Plant, 'Opera Out of This World' in The Herald Sun, Melbourne, October 22 2004

2004 Jo Roberts, 'No Longer Stranded in Space' in The Age, Melbourne, October 21 2004

2003 Ross Gibson, 'Sounds Like Art' in POL Oxygen, No. 5, 2003

Bleddyn Butcher, 'Cross Platform: Sound in Other Media' The Wire, No. 233, London, July 2003

Tony MacGregor, The Persuaders exhibition catalogue essay, Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne, April 2003

2002 '5000 Calls' in Chapter Arts Centre magazine, Cardiff, October 2002

'Chorus of Approval' in 24 Hours, Sydney, March 2002

2001 Mitchell Whitelaw, 'Sit, Ubu, Sit. Good dog' in Real Time, No. 46, Sydney, December 2001

Bruce James, 'The Master's Voice' interview on Arts Today, ABC Radio National, 1 November, 2001

'5000 Calls' in Earshot soundscape journal, UK, December 2001

Felicity Fenner, 'Ground Work' in Art in America, May 2001

2000 Philipe Regnier, 'Art and the Olympics' in The Art Newspaper, No. 105, London, July 2000

Alex Gawronski, 'Game Over? The Olympics Arts Commissions' in Real Time No. 40, Sydney, Dec, 2000

'5000 Calls' in Sydney Olympic Park, Public Arts Program catalogue, Sydney, June 2000

Paul Brown, 'Breaking the Art and Science Standoff' in Real Time, No. 36, Sydney, April 2000

1999 Suzy Freeman-Greene, 'The Sounds of Human Effort' in The Age, Melbourne, September 25, 1999

Anne Susskind, 'Public Intimacy' in The Bulletin, Sydney, May 4 1999

Brigid Smyth, '5000 Calls' in Patrick Bingham-Hall, Olympic Architecture, Watermark Press, Sydney 1999

‘Sound in Museums' in Insite, Melbourne, December 1999

'Electronic Observatory' in Interior Cities, School of Architecture, RMIT University, Melbourne 1999

1998 Ross Gibson, 'Something Strange Disturbing Us…’, Week of Experimental Cinema catalogue, Madrid, 1998

Matthew Moore, 'Forest with More than the Sounds of Silence' in The Sydney Morning Herald, July 17 1998

Anne Susskind, 'Creating a Bridge Over Troubled Water' in The Sydney Morning Herald, March 23 1998

Gary Barker, 'A Sense of Space and Movement' in The Age, Melbourne, November 6 1998

1994 Sonia Leber, 'Earwitness: Excursions in Sound' in Experimenta '94 catalogue, Melbourne, October 1994

Sonia Leber, 'Earwitness: Excursions in Sound' in Mesh, No. 4, Melbourne, 1994

Megan Backhouse, 'Sounds Like…' in The Age, November 11 1994

Anna Clabburn, 'Wherefore Art Thou Genre' in Storm, Melbourne, November 1994

Marie Sierra-Hughes, 'Lending an Ear to Sound' in The Herald Sun, December 2 1994

AnnMarie Johnson, 'Earwitness News' in RealTime No. 3, October 1994

1991 Sonia Leber, 'Watching Films, Making Films' in Cantrills Filmnotes, No. 65, Melbourne October 1991

'Doubtful Invitation' in Oberhausen International KurzFilmTage catalogue, April 1991

1990 Ann Pollock Berecry, 'Open Eyes are a Dream' in Aurora Australis catalogue, Presentation House Gallery, Vancouver, Canada, 1990

1989 'History Takes Place' in Australian Perspecta catalogue, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 1989