Houzz Tours
My Houzz: Art Takes Precedence in a Melbourne Worker's Cottage
Art, life and work intertwine at home for a performance artist and a documentary photographer
When two creatives live and work together, it makes sense that their home double as a studio and gallery to make and put their individual and collaborative work on display. Gosia Wlodarczak and Longin Sarnecki made the move from Perth to Melbourne in 2005 – they were attracted by the city’s arts scene, centralised location for gallery representation, ease of shipping artwork overseas, and the appeal of travel. Wlodarczak’s drawings take place in real time as performance pieces commissioned by galleries, hotels, festivals and art fairs. When Wlodarczak’s work took off not long after they moved to Melbourne, Sarnecki, who is a photographer and a writer, decided to start documenting their life together and her work.
The dining room table was the centrepiece of an auction dinner for 10 people. The linen covering the table on the night is now the painting hanging behind the couple pictured here. Wlodarczak was drawing and documenting as people were eating.
Wlodarczak and Sarnecki will be showing their work at the Fremantle Arts Centre, WA, until November 12. The exhibition, titled Many Happy Landings, includes Wlodarczak’s digital collages alongside Sarnecki’s photography, which visually explains her process.
Wlodarczak and Sarnecki will be showing their work at the Fremantle Arts Centre, WA, until November 12. The exhibition, titled Many Happy Landings, includes Wlodarczak’s digital collages alongside Sarnecki’s photography, which visually explains her process.
On the other side of the room, a canvas tunic worn for a one-hour performance piece by artist and photographer Ilona Nelson in her ongoing series, The Wild Song, hangs from the archway.
While there are many sentimental items decorating the home, the most cherished piece is a secondhand cabinet in the corner of the room, which was given to the couple by friends who have since passed away. “We think about them a lot,” says Wlodarczak.
With their artworks almost taking over the house, the couple say they would add more storage if they were to change anything.
While there are many sentimental items decorating the home, the most cherished piece is a secondhand cabinet in the corner of the room, which was given to the couple by friends who have since passed away. “We think about them a lot,” says Wlodarczak.
With their artworks almost taking over the house, the couple say they would add more storage if they were to change anything.
The kitchen is original to the home and boasts ample shelving space for the couple to display their favourite ceramics and glassware.
Wlodarczak and Sarnecki turned the dining space off the kitchen into a relaxed sitting area. They selected a sofa to fit the length of the wall. Wlodarczak describes her design style as impressionistic, familiar, and personal.
A long, skinny hallway leads straight down the spine of the house to the bedroom at the far end. Doors lead off into the office, guest room, and bathroom.
The couple finds the large glass door/window to the side garden and the small size of the office room conducive to concentration. They work together in their office on photographic prints, photo editing, and publishing projects.
A window provides cross lighting, a view of the side garden and acts as a canvas for a line drawing. About 70 per cent of Wlodarczak’s works are temporary. Many are live performances that are documented or created on glass like this window. The works are fragile and will eventually disintegrate; they express an element of surprise and the ongoing change inherent in our existence.
A close-up detail of the drawing reveals elements of the scene beyond. The drawings are made with a water-based pigment pen by Posca that is easy to wash off.
Wlodarczak has done several installations on glass that employ a more permanent application. One of these is at The Business and Law Building at Edith Cowan University, which features exterior glass-panel cladding printed with Wlodarczak’s drawings. She collaborated with JCY Architects and urban designers on the public art project. The drawings are scanned and printed on translucent foil and sandwiched between two sheets of glass.
Wlodarczak has done several installations on glass that employ a more permanent application. One of these is at The Business and Law Building at Edith Cowan University, which features exterior glass-panel cladding printed with Wlodarczak’s drawings. She collaborated with JCY Architects and urban designers on the public art project. The drawings are scanned and printed on translucent foil and sandwiched between two sheets of glass.
Sarnecki has worked as a journalist, a publisher and a fine art photographer. It was logical for him to document Wlodarczak’s often temporary projects photographically. Wlodarczak’s photographic prints are collages made from items Sarnecki photographs. She selects them, copies them, and arranges them into a finished piece. Her husband’s documentation informs her pieces and becomes the art he documents. Everything is upcycled and intertwined as they support each other in their processes, the development of ideas and finished works.
Through to the bedroom, another cherished item is a chair which Wlodarczak received as a gift from the Heide Museum of Modern Art, after her participation in the Freehand exhibition in 2010.
Through to the bedroom, another cherished item is a chair which Wlodarczak received as a gift from the Heide Museum of Modern Art, after her participation in the Freehand exhibition in 2010.
Of course, more art can be found in the bedroom. A grid of drawings hangs on the wall to the side of the bed, made of monotypes and linocuts mounted in plastic and joined in crochet titled ‘Quilt – Transit Zone’. Wlodarczak made this in 2000.
Bedframe, light fixture and shelving: Ikea
Bedframe, light fixture and shelving: Ikea
Wlodarsczak is currently working on a new design for the bathroom and laundry that will include more storage space. Other plans include built-in furnishings for the office.
At the front of the house, visitors are greeted by Sarnecki’s sculptural cactus garden on the front deck. The couple are fond of their neighbourhood in inner-city Melbourne. “We do not own a car and we walk everywhere, but it is also close to public transportation and shops,” says Wlodarczak.
Their small six-square-metre rear garden is accessed directly from the bedroom. Wlodarsczak says she is not the best gardener, but she loves to garden and is currently growing raspberries and blueberries.
TELL US
What do you like about this home devoted to art in Melbourne? Let us know in the Comments section.
TELL US
What do you like about this home devoted to art in Melbourne? Let us know in the Comments section.
Who lives here: Gosia Wlodarczak and Longin Sarnecki
Location: Richmond, Victoria
Size: 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom
When they first saw their new home, Wlodarczak says they were lured by the large front living room which had great potential to hang their art collection in. They also liked the fact there was no access to their backyard from the multiple laneways in the area, as it made them feel more secure. The living room is the epicentre of activity – it’s where the couple eats dinner, works and has showings for clients. One of Sarnecki’s macro photography prints hangs on the wall next to the front door. It is an enlargement of a fragment of a lottery ticket.
Wlodarczak loves the curtains she bought at Ikea because they resemble her drawings, and when the sun shines through them they cast ephemeral shadows on the living room floor.