Sculptor Peter Zappa presents two different exhibitions at Mossenson Galleries – Countdown to Glenrowan which pays homage to the infamous Ned Kelly, and Movers and Shakers. Both exhibits feature kinetic pieces inspired by creator of the mobile sculpture, Alexander Calder.

Zappa’s work has been exhibited at Sculptures by the Sea in both Bondi Beach and Cottesloe, and spaces across the country. His public art pieces can be found throughout Western Australia, including at Raine Square in Perth city, and more recently in Busselton where he was a joint winner of the 2019 Vasse Art Award.

In his series Countdown to Glenrowan,  Zappa uses blackened metal referencing the famous suit of bulletproof armour worn by Ned Kelly in his final standoff with the police in 1880. The rough, jagged steel in the sculptures evoke images of the Ned Kelly gang making armour on a bush forge, and reference Sidney Nolan’s series of Ned Kelly paintings.

“This is my homage to the mythology of the Kelly gang and the art of blacksmithing,” Zappa says.

“The kinetic effect of the pendulous heads reminds us of the gang riding into Glenrowan with their bodies rhythmically swaying as their horses manoeuvred the difficult terrain. On that fateful day, the gang was bedecked in metal held together with crude rivets.”

Zappa’s second exhibition Movers and Shakers presents a more recognisable and traditional form of kinetic structures, taking inspiration from Alexander Calder’s work. The pieces are an exploration of movement and balance, which has been a running theme throughout his body of work.

Countdown to Glenrowan and Movers and Shakers runs at Mossenson Galleries until 14 March 2020.