Underneath Tomorrow Steve Roper, Gemma Bonskek-Kane, John Hart, Saara March M16 Gallery 15 June - 2 July Gallery hours Wednesday to Sunday 12 – 5pm 21 Blaxland Crescent Griffith ACT 2603
Underneath Tomorrow explores the subconscious imagination. The works all share elements of processing memories, childhood experiences and family myths.
My work in this exhibition is primarily about my first impressions of art, and artists, drawing on a number of the roots of my experience of art: -art and artists in my family -art in the broader society of the time -cartoons and naive/child art It also draws on my interest in "outsider" and "primitve " art, in particular here, Nkondi art from the Kongo people.
The subjects of the works- hell and devils- goes back to my great grandmother Pearlie Gibson's art collection , which made a string impression on me as a child. It was pretty bizarre to visit here, as small children (and no less bizarre as big children, come to think of it)
Pearl Gibson lived in a tiny flat on the site of what is now North Sydney Library. It was intensely decorated with a variety of artworks, but the thing I most remember was at least one image of a devil in strident colours- red and green. As one of her children, Jack Gibson, drew a cartoon series based on Hell (it ran in Man magazine for about 40 years) he may have been the source of that image. This was a very exotic place and made a huge impression on me as a kid, and is in some ways my artistic foundation.
The scary stuff didn't stop there- when she visited us she would delight in telling us really scary stories before bedtime.
Pearl was quite a character. She was immortalized in her grandson Mike's 1980's column in the Woman's Weekly as the eccentric "Aunt Pearl" .
My work has, I hope, overtones of a cartoon-like style and humour. On the one hand this seems appropriate to childhood and children, and on the other relates to the cartoons mentioned above. Related to this, I often work towards a child like innocence, or even silliness in facial expressions.
Those of us in our 60's (and many other's ) grew up in a period of growing national cultural identity. Most schools, hospitals and other public buildings were decorated with reproductions of work by Boyd, Nolan, Drysdale and other mid-century artists (in addition to the Heidelberg school). I am not sure how appealing it was to me as a child, but I have come to appreciate them more over the years (in comparison with comics).
The art, mainly sculptures, of various non western cultures is also an influence. Sculptures from Africa (note the use of nails and screws), South East Asia, Central America and the Pacific have provided great inspiration. I am drawn to their vibrant expressive qualities.