DRAMATISMO
Premier Exhibition

Artist's Statement

This series of oil paintings is a starting point for me, in exploring my fascination for people with amplified personas. Specifically, dramatic characters.
Beginning with a collection of source material I dredged up from the internet, comprising figures from popular and underground culture, I honed in on particular poses and expressions. Ones that caught a moment of heightened drama or hinted at the sensationalist nature of the individual. 
I chose people whose image I was automatically excited by and whose distinct, strong personas have in some way been actively “created”. 

Whether their expression comes from provocation, pure bitchiness or the subject simply trying to show their best side,  there is a distinct element of artifice present in all of them.

As I began to resolve individual paintings, I noticed a thread which was familiar to me. I realised, that growing up close to my extended family, I got to “play” alongside a diverse and very interesting cast of characters, many of whom have a very keen sense for the dramatic.  I’m now very drawn to the passion and energy that comes from that.  But of course, as much as drama can be alluring, it can also be disturbing.  These paintings are an abstract exploration of those extremes.

Are these characters fake? Or is the “façade” a true presentation of their internal selves?
There’s no simple answer to these questions for any one of the subjects, let alone any one of us. These questions will continue to inform my approach to portraiture.

For these works, I have developed my own technique of projecting colour separations onto the painting ground as a tool to build up the first layers of paint, much like a traditional process print. In doing so, I’m playing between the technical act of drafting “realistic” structure and the instinctive process of loosely and automatically responding to the subject and their personality, through suggestive brush strokes.

At nearly 40 years of age, it has taken me a while to understand just how important painting is to me. Having navigated away from the “over-thinking” which previously hampered my commitment to a career as a painter,  I’m very proud to present my first exhibition of portraits, DRAMATISMO.

Mal Harry
November, 2016