The Artist
"Imagination
is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles
the world."
Albert Einstein
Bio
Melbourne docklands
precinct, 28th September, 2002
I was born in
Melbourne, Australia, in 1963 and live there in an inner city suburb with
my partner Demetrios [ also an artist ] and my Budgie
Norman [
know as the "Hubster" for reasons we do not understand]. We now
have a cat which is interesting as we are not "cat" people, she
is a refugee, my Dad's pet, and as he passed away this June 2003 she was homeless.
We are still not "cat" people and though she is attempting our transformation
it won't work.
The work depicted on this website includes my full oeuvre dating back to 1988
when I seriously began to entertain an artistic path.
To live and find work in Melbourne is easier on humans than perhaps in other
cities. It is generally very pretty with some interesting muscular industrial
areas. Gardens and tree lined streets were designed in during town planning
and we take greenery and foliage very much for granted here. The climate is
great, if you enjoy a distinct 4 seasons [ sometimes all in one day ], which
I do, the winters also are very kind, no snow except in the hills, the odd
frost will be all you'll suffer so during winter a decent 3/4 length coat
is all you might need. Currently [ October 2002 ] a mean drought has set in
throughout the eastern states and the countryside is looking under considerable
stress, farmers and country towns are suffering [ it is only mid Spring ]water
restrictions are not far off even for the larger cities. New South Wales [to
Melbourne and Victoria's north ] has had its first bush fire, it is a tinder
box out there. Melbourne is a walkable city with a mostly friendly population
that loves to have the odd international visitor around to show off to. The
gallery scene is much more vibrant when ventured off the commercial strips.
Grab a copy of "The Art Almanac" upon arrival, it has maps and most
of the galleries in Melbourne advertise in it. Lookout for the "artist
run" spaces. The National Gallery of Victoria is not due to reopen until
2003 when the long planned refurbishment is finished. We are all missing it.
The Melbourne Museum is definitely worth a look and the Zoo has undergone
such a transformation in philosophy and structure that I'm not too unhappy
to recommend it being visited as well. Trams make it easy to get around the
inner city and there is good public transport via trains and buses for everywhere
else. The bay is always nearby, make sure to take in the west coast, hire
a car and drive it if you can, and the food; restaurants, cafes, don't forget
the coffee - just about anywhere in Melbourne, is very special.
USA TRIP 2002- see the pictures and diary
Artist's Statement
The art establishment
of Melbourne and indeed Australia does not take seriously art of the Surreal
and Fantastic. The genre is generally dismissed or worse identified with fantasy
art. What is accepted and promoted generally is art that defines [ for some
] the psyche of this nation. The auction houses [ and even the art Museums
] here are dominated by bush scapes, bush outlaws and "folklorique genre"
[ a description coined by Robert Hughes* ] paintings. And, where there should
be opportunity such as in the art fairs we find them to be dominated by commercial
concerns alone. The true "Avant Guard" are further marginalised
within what is an increasingly shrinking market base."Colour-Expressions"
in paint are big favorites in the commercial galleries; a form of "Neo-Modern
Decor Art" being the measure for what passes as art. Muddy urban allegories,
a form of the bush tale, are also popular. Multimedia works that are substanceless
are churned out by design hacks and because the medium is new and technical
their works are found interesting and labeled "avant guard". Some
of it is very good allot of it is just wall paper created with easily applied
filters. The content and purpose of art is many things, it is instructive,
beautiful, challenging but above all it exemplifies the human desire to understand
and pronounce its very existence. The idea that in amongst this should also
sit big swirly colourscapes or patterned and textured monochromes diminishes
the role art has, waters down its meaning to us until we are left with homogeny
and mediocrity. Some of this "art" is merely design industry decor
and this needs to be seen for what it is, attractive design and that is all.
"Retro" is a hugely popular thematic aspect to the decor driven
impostors. It is finding a market though, the design house has infiltrated
the art sector and that is of concern, because it is not a market worth supporting
in terms of the advancement of art and its true practitioners. After all there
are only so many big [ has to be big or it can't be good ] swirly colourscapes
you can look at before you get bored and wander off. The reality is that a
whole new type of gallery visitation is being cultivated, based upon fad and
fashion, that has little relationship to what art is all about. The real artists
and their art will disappear and the decor drivel, that many find so appealing
initially but soon tire of, will remain.
Art of the imagination knows no borders or boundaries designated by fashion,
fad or parochialism, great art of the imagination therefore remains relevant
whatever the time.
The following is a letter written to The Editor,
The Age newspaper (Melbourne's broadsheet) published in the letters section
on Sat 14th Dec 2002. The art work in question was in my opinion intellectually
lazy and fairly pointless.
"State
of the Art?"
"This years Turner Prize's winning entry "The Thinker" by Keith Tyson,
will come as no surprise to many struggling fine artists. Quality of idea,
including its conception and delivery are out of favour in contemporary art
circles throughout the world. When you have no idea or talent you plumb the
depths of your minimal experience and "borrow" the excellence of others.
What is disheartening, disgusting and soul destroying is that the purported
art "intelligentsia", the collecting institutions, the commercial art sector
and the art market lap it up and perpetuate the myth that this is the art
of our times. All contribute to the ongoing aggrandisement of what is little
more than design orientated window dressing and commit to obscurity those
truly deserving of acknowledgment. The art lover, the collector and the public
via their art institutions have a diminished and diminishing experience as
a consequence. The critic too has their role in perpetuating this state of
affairs with slavish attention paid to only those exhibitions where their
own reputation, or that of the publications they write for will be served.
Thus art, artists and the art lover suffers from an impenetrable clique of
self-serving mediocrity."
and this
one published... in July 2000 - when just too much sport simply wasn't enough
for the media and public in the post Olympic glow.....
"The elite sports women and men in this country enjoy high status. Their
efforts to attain excellence are equated with all that is good and praiseworthy.
By its very nature, sports is elitist. However, these same striving and goal
orientated attitudes are discouraged and disparaged in the arts and academia.
Sadly, our community and even our leaders differentiate between innate elitism
in sporting excellence & excellence in academia. Why is it that the pursuit
of excellence is lauded and supported in sports, but viewed with suspicion when
it emerges from within the intellectual and arts sectors? Surely the contradiction
is obvious?
For a person to be labelled an "Elite" practitioner of the sport in which they
excel is high praise indeed. Their "elitism" is seen as a contribution to the
world bank of human endeavor. Jane Flemming is an elite athlete, who as a recent
somewhat curiously chosen spokesperson for the arts community, stated that the
challenge for artists was to make themselves (and presumably their art) more
accessible and therefore more relevant to the community, less "elitist". Yet
were her philosophy to be applied to sports, then the Olympics, as a case in
point, would never have selection trials; they are elitist.
So, lower the hurdles, reduce the track and swimming times and force the athletes
to comply so that we are all able to compete at an 'elite' level so as not to
feel alienated or excluded. The implication is that for our artists and intellectuals
those "hurdles", "bars" and "times" must be lowered, they must "dumb down" so
the rest of us do not feel threatened. Most of us at some stage in our lives
have been faced with the realisation that we do not measure up in some way.
Perhaps in the area of physical pursuits it is easier to measure excellence
and therefore easier to concede we cannot compete.
Measuring the scales of excellence for the arts and academia is a little trickier,
who comes First, Second and Third? I would argue that the whole community benefits
from this type of 'race', relevance is not an issue. Exclusion is only in the
mind, participation is always available. Academia and the arts communities could
use a shake or two certainly, not to reduce that potent drive for excellence
but to promote it with the open passion and honesty exemplified by the sports
community."
Inspirations & Technique
I work in oils on canvas and I am largely self taught with a little formal technical training. Along the way I have greatly benefited from the generous advice of artist friends and been inspired by many influences. Those influences are varied and are, in no particular order or preference; Remedios Varo, James Gleeson, Carravagio, Leonora Carrington, Dorothea Tanning, Jacques Louis David, Eugene Delacroix, Jean-Auguste-Dominque Ingre, Sandro Botticelli, Hieronymus Bosch....The list could go on and on. Inspired by these past greats plus the greats of the present and the future [ some of which I am privileged to include on my links page ] I hope to learn and contribute as much on my artistic journey as they have.
I paint essentially
with the viewer in mind, hoping they are prompted to ponder more deeply on
what the image might mean to them. If the viewer is challenged, all the better.
[ Aesthetics are a consideration e.g: in terms of balance of composition,
colour and tonal gradation, light and dark, etc. However, concerns about whether
or not the painting will fit into the decor or sit well above the mantel are
not ]. The works can become answers to my own questions, though an idea can
emerge all from the imagination. Generally the ideas are an intellectual expression
of how I view the world. I cannot simply paint what is there and attain satisfaction
from the effort. However impressive might the result be, it is not enough.
It is the idea upon which for me pivots meaning and purpose, not forgetting
that the success or failure of a painting can depend on its technical execution.
I combine a kind of fresco technique with tonal realism, working up the surface
of the canvas in layers. I use my own photography; of models,
objects or scenes in order to accurately reference all the elements of an
idea that are represented within the composition. A kind of referenced collage
helps me piece the idea together. Sometimes I will have the idea first then
search for the elements to reinforce what the imagination has produced. Often
the elements I have collected will themselves suggest an idea. There is no
rule here. The only constant is that it does not come easily and many compositions
are rejected, or reworked over and again. Sometimes it all just comes together
and you get a rush of satisfaction that is hard to describe, those are the
experiences you hope for when painting. Oh, and yes, it doesn't hurt your
inner artistic growth to sell the odd canvas now and then either.
*In
his book Anything if Not Critical
Robert Hughes used this phrase to describe French painters who traveled to
Brittany to paint the Breton peasants. It is a phrase which I feel aptly describes
the Australian artist who travels "outback" to paint the "real"
Australia.
