Staff Profiles

Dr Schilo started work at Curtin in 1993 as a part time lecturer in Visual Culture and since that time has developed a strong profile in the national arts community as both a dedicated teacher and engaged researcher. From 1998 until 2010, she was a member of the Division of Humanities Graduate Studies Committee, serving variously as a School representative, as a postgraduate studies coordinator and finally as the Director of Graduate Studies in the Faculty of Humanities. In 2003 she was awarded the inaugural Australian Council for University Art and Design Schools (ACUADS) Distinguished Service Award for her contribution to teaching and research.

Ann’s teaching and research concerns intersect in various areas and follow a number of key themes surrounding contemporary art theory and practice. She is particularly interested in the areas of folk material culture, women’s artistic practices, feminist art theory and the visualisation of place. In her role as postgraduate coordinator, she developed an ongoing concern for best practice in the delivery of postgraduate research programs and is recognised for her work in the area of creative production theses. As well as contributing to national and international conferences through the presentation of papers, Ann writes for many local and national art journals and catalogues. She is currently a member of the Editorial Board of the Studio Research Journal.

Currently I have four strands to my research.

Firstly I have on going work on women’s artistic practice in WA which has entailed a number of recent projects. In 2011 I received an invitation from the Albany City Council to be a guest curator for their Annual Curator’s Choice Exhibition. As the first woman to be invited to take on this role, I was interested in applying a feminist perspective to my curatorial premise. From their collection, I selected the work of twenty four women artists that highlighted not only a breadth of styles, genres and mediums but also covered both historical and contemporary perspectives.  The resultant exhibition and accompanying catalogue, Insight was presented at the Vancouver Arts Centre in January, 2012.

In addition I have been working with a number of contemporary Western Australian women artists on a range of activities that have included catalogue essays, journal articles and curatorial projects. For example, my interest in theorizing craft has underscored research about the work of Jeanette Rein that has been published in 2009 as a catalogue and in the journal Craft Arts International 76. More recently, I have been working with contemporary artist, Jane Whiteley whose work explores issues surrounding plain sewing, history, identity and artistic practice.  This research is will result in a monograph to be published in late 2012 and an exhibition planned for 2013.

My second, interrelated strand of research involves considerations of I have been engaged in place and identity that is grounded in material culture and visual arts practice. This has included a collaboration with Dr Anna Sabadini that has resulted in three conference presentations and journal articles in 2010: ‘Visual transformations: to mix metaphors in the field of painting’ in International Journal of Arts and Society, Vol5, No.3.; ‘Collaborative Viewpoints: the writing of impossible descriptions’ Colloquy22; and ‘Delighting in metaphors: Viewpoints from the South West’ Tradition and transformation, 2010 AAANZ Conference, Adelaide.

Part of my interest in interdisciplinary research informed by feminist approaches to cultural geography, art theory and practice will involve the presentation Lyrical landscapes: picturing experience at  the Affective Landscapes Conference at University of Derby in May 2012. This paper builds on earlier research that has included ‘Lines Flight and Fancy: migrated metaphors of dislocation’ Mundos de Muneros 08, International Women’s Interdisciplinary Congress, Madrid July in 2008.

The third interrelated strand to my research explores issues surrounding the theorizing of craft practices and contemporary visual culture as well as on going interest in folk material culture. This has been realized in 2010 as a chapter discussing the use of adornment in fashion, ‘On Dress and Adornment’ in Beyond Garment ed. Anne Farren, Western Australian Museum, Perth and in 2009 the chapter, ‘Foreign aesthetics- Art in working life’ in FOREIGNERS: Secret Artefacts of Industrialism ed. J. Harris, Black Swan Press

The final aspect of my research interest is in the area of creative PhDs where I have contributed to the on-going issue of best practice in the delivery of these programs in Australia. This interest has resulted in a number of publication including in 2009 ‘Verbal transfigurations: when the daughters of the night dance in daylight’ Interventions in the Public Domain ACUADS conference, Brisbane,. I am currently collaborating with Professor Barbara Milech on a co-authored book chapter to be published in late 2012 that extends our ideas on the research question model as a means for understanding the relationship between studio practice and the exegesis which was originally published in 2004 as ‘Exit Jesus: Relating the Exegesis and Creative Production Component of a Research Thesis’ in TEXT Special Issue No.3

Book Chapters (Authored, Research Quality)

• Schilo, A. 2009. Foreign aesthetics- Art in Working Life. In Foreigners: Secret Artefacts of Industrialism, 1 Edition, eds Jennifer Harris, 54-61. Perth: Black Swan Press.

Refereed Articles (Scholarly Journals)

• Sabadini, A, and Schilo, A. 2011. Collaborative Viewpoints: The Writing of Impossible Descriptions. colloquy: text theory critique 22: 261-273.
• Schilo, A, and Sabadini, A. 2010. Transforming Viewpoints: To Mix Metaphors in the Field of Painting. The International Journal of the Arts in Society 5(3): 13-28.
• Schilo, A, and Milech, B. 2004. 'Exit Jesus': Relating to the Exegesis and the Creative/Production Components of a Research Thesis. Text Number 3: 1-13.
• Schilo, A. 2003. Passing: Ainsley Hillard. Object 42: 82-82.

Fully written papers (Refereed Conference proceedings)

• Schilo, A. 2009. Verbal transfigurations: when the daughters of the night dance in daylight. ACUADS 2009 Conference:Interventions in the Public Domain, 30/10/2009. Queensland College of the Arts Griffith University Brisbane: the Australian Council of University Art & Design Schools (ACUADS).
• Schilo, A. 2005. Concerto for School and gallery. Rhapsody 21: The future of University Museums and Arts Galleries, 25/05/2005. Tasmania: The School of Visual and Performing Arts, University of Tasmania.
• Schilo, A. 2003. Place Making: Some reflections on Western Australian Art Practice. ACUADS 2003 Conference, 01/10/2003. University of Tasmania: ACUADS.

Major Creative Works

• Schilo, A. 2010. On dress and adornment. Western Australia, Australia: Western Australian Museum.
• Schilo, A. 2009. Jeanette Rein - Catalgue Essay. Perth, Australia: Department of Culture and the Arts.

Minor Creative Works

• Schilo, A. 2011. Personal Space: Defined. The art of Brenda Ridgewell. Perth, Australia: Gallery East.
• Schilo, A. 2010. Casino Sisyphus. Perth, Australia: Printezy.
• Schilo, A. 2006. All that is solid, 05 Edition. Fremantle WA: Fremantle Arts Centre.
• Schilo, A. 2006. de-function. Fremantle WA: NAVA.
• Schilo, A. 2006. Grand Gestures. Fremantle WA: mooresbuilding contemporaryartgallery.
• Schilo, A. 2006. Kirstine Sadler - First Works. perth WA: Emerge Art Space.
• Schilo, A. 2006. Table Settings: Of naked chefs and kitchen goddesses. Perth WA: Central TAFE Art Gallery.
• Schilo, A. 2005. Pair of pierced geometric bowls (black /white) by Sandra Black. Perth WA: Art Gallery of Western Australia.
• Schilo, A. 2004. A Continuing Dialogue. Western Australia: John Curtin Gallery.
• Schilo, A. 2004. Eileen Keys. Western Australia: John Curtin Gallery.
• Schilo, A. 2002. the one that grabs the eye. Sydney: Australian Centre for Craft and Design.