Lorenna Grant bio

Lorenna Grant: Artist for the Western Australian State Government Percent for Art Scheme.

Lorenna Grant is a practicing visual artist bringing with her a public art portfolio of 10 years public art experience.  Her studies include Claremont School of Art (Dip Art & Design-Sculpture), a post graduate diploma and a Masters of Creative Art from Curtin University of Technology. In 1996 she received the Domius Scholarship to R.M.I.T. (Architecture+Green) to develop her practice in the area of art in relation to environment. In 2005 she was the awarded the Allen’s Arthur Robinson Scholarship of $10,000 for the Sculpture ‘The Lions Throat’ in the inaugural, Sculpture by the Sea at Cottesloe.

Lorenna’s move toward public art commenced with a primary interest in site-specific art. Early works were found predominantly in natural and built environments. This coupled with a dedication to ephemera and a strong regard for ‘nature’, she endeavours within every project to include these underlying drives. Lorenna is interested in expanding descriptions of public art both materially and contextually.

Lorenna’s interest in the public sphere as a place of transformation, social empowerment and informed wonder began with a 250 metre long suburban drain: ‘Turtle Rush Art Project 1’ was to encompass the research, redesign to incorporate filtration, aeration and wildlife proliferation systems under an artful canopy. The project was completed after 2 years with the success of sponsorship, community involvement, documented research, transformed earth works, indigenous aquatics, indigenous planting, and performative art installations, projected artful directions and a catalogue sponsored in the moment of printing by the swan water and rivers commission.

Themes have settled through her work that resonates with principles of ecology: themes of water as perforated or dissolving borders and bodies of memory. Often found are birds, as metaphors of transience, migrational flows and instinctual pathways.  Importantly it is the consideration of context that her ideas are oxygenated, the artworks hinge on their physical context.  In 2008/9 Lorenna has completed several major commissions. The works continue to develop integrated artful networks found through out the buildings and surrounds.

Significant projects include:
Dalyellup Secondary School Bunbury: budget $170,000, Architects Hassell.
Manea College Bunbury: budget $130,000 Architects Cox ,Howlett, Bailey and Woodland.

In her approach to projects Lorenna is primarily interested in the social and natural heritage of the area. In getting to know the architectural concepts and intentions.  She identifies key notions that will layer a conceptual weave of ideas. Lorenna’s processes are open and will move and transfer in materiality until the artworks come to inform, enhance, and complete and direct the functionality of the space. She continually looks for new materials to illustrate ideas and incorporates ecologically motivated solutions to for public environments.

See images of Lorenna Grant's work
Read more about Lorenna Grant’s Western Australian State Government Percent for Art Scheme project
Read about other State Government Percent for Arts Scheme projects
Find out more about the Western Australian State Government Percent for Art Scheme