by Yioryios Papayioryiou
St Peters Interchange, top of the mound
The idea for this artwork came from the unique heritage and history of St Peters Interchange.
Yioryios Papayioryiou is an emerging, local Inner West artist who works out of his Alexandria studio. He creates minimalist, abstract sculptures inspired by architecture and the built environment. His new work Points of Interception is a seamless, fluid gesture responding to the lines and contours of the new St Peters Interchange. It is also a celebration of local heritage and character. Painted on one side in a vibrant cadmium deep red, it is the iconic colour associated with Federation architecture built throughout the Inner West. While re-imagining the heritage of the area into contemporary sculpture, Points of Interception simultaneously provides a new icon for St Peters that embodies the regeneration and revitalization of the Interchange as part of a major city-shaping project.
The work is sited on top of the St Peters Interchange mound adjacent to Canal Road. It is the main landscape feature of the parkland and from this vantage point audiences can appreciate the artwork in the context of a city in motion. The panoramic view from the top of the mound provides an insight into the complex logistics and transit modalities of a global city: the constant stream of aircraft at Sydney Airport; the colourful patchwork of shipping containers at Canal Road Maritime Container Services; and the hum of the surrounding major road arteries.
Points of Interception harnesses the energy and dynamism of this transforming urban landscape, distilling it into a sculptural form that diverse audiences can access and enjoy.
Yioryios was born in Wellington, New Zealand and now lives and works in Sydney, Australia. His studio is based in Alexandria. Yioryios creates organic architectural forms which are grounded in the framework and mentality of painting but realised in the form of sculpture. Working with aluminium and acrylic paints, the artist bends, folds, contorts and manipulates his materials–a process which culminates in the creation of works defined by a sense of energy and movement.
Yioryios creates organic architectural forms which are grounded in the framework and mentality of painting but realised in the form of sculpture.
Yioryios is early in his career as an artist, graduating from the Australian National University with a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours in 2014, yet his achievements include solo exhibitions and numerous group exhibitions. In 2015 & 2016 he was a finalist in the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize and in 2016 he completed a large-scale commission for ANZ corporate headquarters in Melbourne. His work is held in significant private collections both in Australia and internationally and is also included in the collection of the Australian Embassy in Paris.
These resources have been designed by experienced Visual Arts educators to support students and teachers studying and delivering the NSW syllabus for Visual Arts, and are tailored to Stage 4 and Stage 5.
Stage 6 teachers may also consider some of the artist studies for their students.
