Explore & Collect with David Flack

David Flack, Founder and Principal of Flack Studio and Melbourne Art Fair Ambassador, is an Australian designer renowned for multi-faceted, experiential residential, hospitality, commercial and retail environments. As the scion of a construction business family, he has a deep-seated understanding of the built environment; as a sophisticated traveller with an appreciation for art and culture, he is attuned to the potential of interiors to not just provide shelter from the world, but to create one’s own identity within it.

Melbourne Art Fair speaks with Flack about his most anticipated artists, works, and galleries coming to the Fair next week.

D’Lan Contemporary (Naarm/Melbourne, Gadigal/Sydney, New York), Booth C8
Timothy Cook

Timothy paints circular forms that represent Kulama – an important initiation ceremony for young Tiwi men that occurs at yam harvesting time. I love that this work is on locally sourced bark. When I see a work like this I think about how generous First Nations artists are in their willingness to share their cultural knowledge, when they have been disrespected so fully by the process of colonisation.

Timothy Cook, Kulama, 2023, locally sourced ochres on stringybark, 107 x 67cm. Courtesy the artist and D’Lan Contemporary (Naarm/Melbourne, Gadigal/Sydney, New York).

Niagara Galleries (Naarm/Melbourne), Booth E3
Noel McKenna

My dogs are family to me, I love how Noel always centres animals in his everyday portraits. The interior of this room reminds me of the austere but beautiful Louis Barragan House in Mexico city, which employs simple forms and shocks of bright primary colours to make evocative spaces.

Noel McKenna, The rain cries, 2023, oil on plywood, 42 x 44.5cm. Courtesy the artist and Niagara Galleries (Naarm/Melbourne).

Nanda\Hobbs (Gadigal Country/Sydney), Booth M5
Lottie Consalvo

There is a rawness to Lottie’s work that is very primal. I especially like the use of the hessian in this work, its rough texture in opposition to the lovely fine shapes that the frayed edges make.

Lottie Consalvo, Pause Again, 2024, scrylic and hessian on canvas, 102 x 122cm. Courtesy the artist and Nanda\Hobbs (Gadigal Country/Sydney).

COMA (Gadigal Country/Sydney), Booth K4
Jane Yang D’Haene

I like works that play with the tension between technical mastery, experimentation and looseness. The glazes Jane has used on this pot are so warm, it has a gorgeous glow.

Jane Yang D’Haene, Untitled, 2024, stoneware, porcelain, glaze, 46 x 34 x 34cm. Courtesy the artist and COMA (Gadigal Country/Sydney).

Neon Parc (Naarm/Melbourne), Booth E1
Janet Burchill

I love the strength and political potency of Janet’s works. In my office I have two of her and Jennifer’s portraits of Simone Weil the French Philosopher. This series hits home hard as we collectively reckon with the devastating effects of climate change.