Alyssa Simone is an Australian media artist living and working in Southern France. She uses immersive digital media installation to visually explore the human condition through ‘transformative experience’.
Simone’s work is centred around what lies beyond human sensory perception. She is particularly interested in the unique and often profound ‘transformative experience.’ These experiences expand the individual’s vision of material existence, convincing them that there exist aspects of reality intangible to the human senses. Inspired by personal experience, she cultivates her ideas by immersing herself in literature and art history. She has a multidisciplinary approach to her research analysing works from psychology, mythology, philosophy, quantum physics and literature. Her work manifests in archetypal forms which are often in a state of perpetual transformation. Alyssa’s work is recurrently presented in universally recognised forms of beauty and each work possesses an underlying element of unease, a form of darkness or dark beauty.
Simone uses a unique blend of video, audio, photography, compositing and digital animation to create the core component of her installations. She then carefully constructs immersive environments for her imagery with the use of found objects, theatrical techniques, sub bass audio and large scale projections. She endeavours to use the latest technologies available to her to create an immersion of the senses; visually, aurally and corporally.
Alyssa attended Sydney College of the Arts, graduating with first class honours and the university medal in 2000. She went on to complete her PhD at the Tasmanian School of Art in 2011.
In 2011 Alyssa was awarded the MONA (Museum of Old and New Art) scholarship. The MONA Scholarship is a monetary art prize offered to an emerging Tasmanian artist. The money is provided for materials and equipment for an exhibition at MONA one year after the award. Ariadne’s Thread was exhibited at Museum of Old and New Art in August 2012. “Alyssa’s five new video works are entitled Ariadne’s Thread and continue her exploration of human perception and how we interpret the world around us. Her work is not solipsistic; she starts with the human condition as a whole and then looks at the personal to show the visual and mental games we play on ourselves – consciously and unconsciously.” Delia Nicholls, MONA.
Alyssa has been awarded a number of grants and prizes, most recently she was highly commended for Mesmerised (ocean) in the Bay of Fires Art Prize 2013.
Simone has exhibited across Australia participating in exhibitions in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania. Some of her exhibitions include Ariadne’s Thread at MONA (2012), Out of Site at CAST gallery in Hobart (2011), Seeing Beauty at the Plimsoll gallery in Hobart (2010), Parallel at the Long Gallery in Hobart (2008), which toured venues throughout Victoria and South Australia concluding in 2010 and The Port Arthur Project for the Ten Days on the Island festival in Tasmania (2007).
In 2019 Alyssa moved with her family to Southern France near the Spanish border. Over the last seven years she has been working with her partner, Byron Drogemuller, to establish Atomic Toffee studios for their art practice in Europe.
Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
| 2004-2011 | Doctor of Philosophy Tasmanian School of Art, University of Tasmania |
| 1997-2000 | Bachelor of Visual Arts, Honours Class 1 and the University Medal Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney |
AWARDS, SCHOLARSHIPS AND COLLECTIONS
| 2012 | The MONA Collection Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart AIR Artist in Residence Claremont College, Hobart |
| 2011-2012 | The MONA Scholarship Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart |
| 2004-2009 | Australian Postgraduate Award University of Tasmania |
| 2001-2002 | University of Sydney Post Graduate Award University of Sydney |
| 2001 | University Exchange Ecole Regionale des Beaux Arts, Saint Etienne, France |
| 2000 | Fauvette Loureiro Memorial Artists Exchange Scholarship University of Sydney The University Medal University of Sydney |
| 1998 | Tangent Publication of the University of Sydney |
| 1995 | Deans’ Roll of Excellence Faculty of Visual and Performing Arts, University of Tasmania |
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
| 2013 | Highly Commended, Bay of Fires Art Prize Gallery Parnella, St Helens |
| 2012 | Ariadne’s Thread Museum of Old and New Art, Hobart |
| 2011 | The Churchie National Emerging Art Exhibition Griffith University Art Gallery, Brisbane Out of Site CAST gallery, Hobart |
| 2010 | Seeing Beauty: a visual exploration of transformative experience Solo PhD examination exhibition, Plimsoll Gallery, Hobart |
| 2008-2010 | Parallel Traveling exhibition, Victoria and South Australia |
| 2008 | Parallel Long Gallery, Hobart |
| 2007 | The Port Arthur Project Ten Days on the Island, Port Arthur, Tasmania |
| 2003 | Artlessness Phatspace, Sydney |
| 2002 | Knock Knock First Draft Gallery, Sydney |
| 2000 | A Thousand Words First Draft Gallery, Sydney |
| 1999 | Sublime Absence Smith and Stoneley Gallery, Brisbane |
| 1998 | Standing Still and Shaking First Draft Gallery, Sydney |