SYDNEY.- The Museum of Contemporary Art unveiled a new wave of young artists in Primavera 2008, the MCA’s annual showcase of work by Australian artists aged 35 years and under.

Thirteen artists have been selected by curator Hannah Mathews to participate in Primavera 2008, six of which are participating as part of collaborative artist duos.
MCA visitors can experience a range of media, practices and approaches by the selected artists:

• Marcus Canning (WA) has transformed a cultural icon of our age into a melting puddle of hot pink failure for Primavera. Canning, who also works as a designer and curator in his home town of Perth, was inspired by the famous Walt Disney castle;

• Danielle Freakley (WA) will perform her famous project The Quote Generator, which sees her communicate with the public through quotation only. For Primavera 2008, this project is presented via installation, documentation and the internet;

• Tarryn Gill& Pilar Mata Dupont (WA) present a dance-based video work and live performances, continuing their interest in theatre, visual arts and story telling;

• Ariel Hassan (SA) is an Argentinean artist who divides his time between Adelaide and Europe. In Primavera 2008 he will show a major painting triptych and related sculptural works;

• Mark Hilton (VIC) has created a number of intentionally provocative works that examine past intercultural conflicts in a series of jewel-like lightboxes;

• Paul Knight (VIC) is a photographic artist whose recent works examine the search for intimacy within relationships;

• Moya McKenna (VIC) creates still-life paintings in her studio that capture a collection of well loved objects in the shifting shadows of the day;

• Ms & Mr (Stephanie and Richard nova Milne) (NSW) use their marriage as a creative vehicle to explore the sentimentality of their relationship through the manipulation of family videos and photographs;

• Gemma Smith (QLD) presents a collection of abstract paintings and a 3D adaptable sculpture that demonstrate the power of composition to control the trajectory of the audience’s gaze; and

• Soda_Jerk (artist-duo and sisters Dan and Dominique Angeloro) (NSW) use video to present a narrative-based examination of hip-hop culture and turntablism through remixed audio and visual samples.

As part of its partnership with the MCA, Primavera 2008 is proudly sponsored by Deutsche Bank for the fourth consecutive year.

“Since 2005, Deutsche Bank has generously supported Primavera and in doing so has demonstrated a commitment to fostering creativity by supporting the work of gifted young artists from across the nation,” says MCA Director Elizabeth Ann Macgregor.

Throughout its 17 year history Primavera has showcased over 120 artists - including James Angus, Mikala Dwyer, Shaun Gladwell and Nike Savvas – providing valuable exposure at early stages of their careers.

The Primavera exhibition series was founded in 1992 by Dr Edward and Mrs Cynthia Jackson and their family in memory of their daughter and sister Belinda Jackson, a talented jewellery designer who passed away at the age of 29. The exhibition commemorates Belinda Jackson by celebrating the creative achievements of talented young artists who are in the early stages of their careers. The Jackson family have also provided an annual fund for the acquisition of works by artists who have shown in Primavera.