Ways Through - fortyfivedownstairs
Images courtesy of George Jefford
Amanda Western’s Ways Through opens with an explanation of the linocut process, with her tools on a plinth, arming you with the knowledge that each print on show is the result of years of practice, and dozens of hours of painstaking carving. After that, you immediately encounter the block and artist print for her Country Lane work. Between the size and the detail, it’s an apt greeting to an exhibition that runs the gamut of print sizing and detail, and a warm welcome to a show about the quiet moments and everyday places.
Considering that this is a show advertised entirely as linocut prints, it is no surprise that it is in these linocuts that you truly get a sense of Western as an artist. No matter the size or subject, in these works you gaze into the scenes of a world that is loved. Cloistered View embodied this: the arches, bricks, and trees feel ancient and weathered, the airs of a print much older than the 2025 date given. On closer look, the small details like security chains and boxy lights remind you that this is a moment from a life being lived now.
Western plays with forms at various points through the show, but it was her sculptural series of works, Can’t see the forest, where this experimentation gave glimpses of what the artist is truly capable of. The sculptural works, though sold separately, are striking when seen together. Tree trunks covered in proof prints - the name is on the nose. Covered cardboard rolls, repurposed from holding fabric, at first glance felt out of place in an exhibition that is nearly entirely wall mounted prints and canvases. Once faced with it, you understand that this is the type of work that makes contending with the CBD foot traffic entirely worth it.
Printmaking is time intensive and detail oriented. Western lays this out clearly at the start, and truly shines at the midpoint with Can’t see the forest, but loses this thread by the end. The introduction and artist statement only make mention of Western’s linocuts, so the inclusion of acrylic paintings at the tail end felt out of place, detracting from the nuance of the prints before them. Also puzzling were the plinths with tote bags and art journals for sale, taking a rather introspective, gentle show into the realm of the touristy or commercial. With the help of a good curator, Western’s work might have the ability to connect deeply to the audience, instead I was left puzzled, like the execution of the show and its clearly laid out theme ended at a point I was unaware of.
Amanda Western’s Ways Through is on at fortyfivedownstairs until 27 September.