Otomys is proud to present Vantage Point - a group exhibition bringing together seven artists in Paddington, Sydney from 15 - 25 October 2026.
Seven artists, seven vantage points, one room - close enough to compare, distinct enough to hold their own. Vantage Point is the second exhibition in the Otomys In Residence programme, following Still Point at Villa Alba Museum in 2025.
152 - 154 Jersey Road, Paddington, Sydney, 2021
Register interest via info@otomys.com
OTOMYS: What was your intention behind the work in Vantage Point?
Caroline Collom: The process of making became part of the Vantage Point, bringing my focus inward and towards the journey rather than the final image. The physicality of mark-making, layering and gesture became an integral part of the work.
OTOMYS: Have you noticed any subtle shifts in your practice since Still Point compared to now with,
Vantage Point?
Caroline Collom: Yes, I think you can see the shifts in my practice through how different the works are. I try to push my practice in response to what each exhibition means to me, setting the trajectory for the work. Still Point was emotional, layered with history and colour theory, with an aura about the works. Vantage Point is much looser and more instinctive, with a rawness and sense of the undefined. What fascinates me is that I deliberately worked on the same size but approached the canvas with different brushes and bodily angles than I usually do in my work. I changed my point of connection with the canvas, which was part of the intention I described in the previous question.
OTOMYS: What does Vantage Point mean to you now, and how has your thinking around it developed?
Caroline Collom: For me, the work will really come into its own in the space of Vantage Point, as I feel there will be a shift in how the work is read and approached. The works were deliberately painted with meek colours and a sense of ambiguity in their muted and restrained tones. I have continued to think about whether it is the mindset of how we look, rather than where we stand, that creates our vantage point. This thinking is still developing, but I want the work to have a sensitivity that asks us not to judge it too quickly, but to allow it to unfold in its own time.
OTOMYS: You recently took part in a workshop at Australian Print workshop. How did that experience feed into your works for Vantage Point?
Caroline Collom: This workshop highlighted something in my practice that I was aware of, but hadn’t realised was such an important part of how I work. I sketch my painting before I start, but there is always movement and forgiveness in the making and II tend to work over the early layers and allow the final stages to hold and dictate the painting. With printing, you are always moving forward. The mindset is more planned, asking you to know when enough is enough and how you want the layers to sit over each other. Rather than working into and blending the layers, I became more conscious of allowing them to remain visible and sit alongside each other.
OTOMYS: Did the sequence or order in which you made the works matter? Do they build on one another in a particular way or could they stand independently, in any order or still hold together as a series?
Caroline Collom: Regardless of the series I am working on, I tend to work on multiple paintings at the same time, of setting drying times and making the most of my time in the studio with each layer. The results and techniques from one work feed directly into another, allowing me to recognise what was working and carry that into the next painting. Each work has its own perspective, but they work together through their shared process and thinking.
View the Vantage Point catalouge online here
