Internationally-acclaimed Australian artist Emily Floyd is recognised for her large-scale, geometric sculptures. Reminiscent of childhood toys and building blocks, Floyd's exuberant works are often public icons that inject a striking and playful element within the urban landscape. A large blackbird and yellow worm arc alight upon the motorway between Dandenong and Keyborough, while Abstract Labour spells out centemporary concerns of modernism, feminism and the public realm. Floyd's father was a toymaker who passed on his craft to Floyd. From her mother she inherited a strong sense of the politics of institutional education and organised childcare. These are influences that are highly visible in the artist's works.
Read MoreHer work also draws from Russian Constructivist motifs, Steiner teaching methods, Cuisenaire rods and the political struggles of recent Australian history. This multifaceted approach to making makes Floyd a versatile artist whose works continues to push the boundaries between form and content, and makes play the central concern. Floyd's work is held in collections throughout Australia and abroad, including at The National Gallery of Australia, Gallery of Modern Art Queensland, National Gallery of Victoria and The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Her recent solo show at Heide Museum, Far Rainbow 2014, and New Dawn 2014, at National Gallery of Victoria, were both critically praised for her exploration of radical form and utopian vision.
