Ernst Fries 1934 – 2020
Ernst was born in Wurzburg, Germany in 1934. He has written an account of wartime life “Life on the Other Side”. After the war in 1953 he lived and studied silver-smithing in Switzerland and in 1959 immigrated to Australia with his new wife Rosmarie.
After 4 years of odd jobs he worked as a full time silversmith utilizing vitreous enamel to create individually designed jewellery and hollow ware for churches. Early exhibitions were dominated by works in silver and enamel but a leaning towards sculpture was recognised as early as 1965 by art critic Donald Brook, in his exhibition review in the Canberra Times. Early sculptures were figurative bronzes but he soon changed to creating more abstract work using steel. He also became interested in the use of Dalle de Verre glass set in concrete and polyurethane.
Ernst was President (several times) of the Association of Sculptors of Victoria and in 1983 to 1988 was President of the Australian National Committee of International Association of Art (UNESCO). In this capacity he attended world congresses in Germany, Iraq, Spain, Japan and Mexico.
In 1984-1985 he was granted a 12 month studio residency in City of Wurzburg, Gemany.
Ernst was re-elected as President of IAA in 1992 to 1997 and during this time he initiated and organised the International Sculpture Event in Toolangi in 1996.
In 2000 Ernst organized a successful major exhibition of Aboriginal (Tiwi) art and artists to tour Germany.
Ernst has had many solo exhibitions in public and commercial galleries and has participated in many important group exhibitions such as the ‘ Emigrants’ in the Australian National Gallery in Canberra and ‘Treasures from Australian Churches’ in the National Gallery of Victoria.His work is widely represented in public, corporate and private collections nationally and overseas and is exhibited at Art at Linden Gate.
In 2010 Ernst completed his Master of Fine Arts at Monash University with his research centreing on Light, Colour, Spatiality through the medium of Dalle de Verre.
