SPACE 1: JESSE DAYAN AND SIMON LINARDI
Exhibition dates. 2 - 13 March, 2022
Opening Reception : Thur 3 March 2022, 6:00 - 8.30pm.
Between Earth and Sky is an exhibition of artworks that developed through conversations between Dayan and Linardi regarding the concept of a constructed landscape. Such landscapes can contain internal and external space in both a metaphorical and literal sense. These represent perspectives directed inward and outward respectively.
Exhibition view
Interview with artist: Jesse Dayan
1. How do your paintings speak to the idea of a ‘constructed landscape’?
These paintings engage with the idea of a constructed landscape in a number of ways. Firstly the subject of these paintings are human made landscapes such as palace gardens which are designed and planted with human form and scale in mind. In this sense the gardens are outward manifestations of human ambition and contemplation. The gardens exist to harbor people and thus the absence of people can create a sense of unease. Secondly these are of course painted depictions of gardens which allow for the possibility to construct landscapes within the picture that don’t exist or could not exist in reality. In this sense the paintings are constructed fictions rather than observational records.
2. Who and what has influenced your painting style?
My recent interest in Indian miniatures has been a big influence on this suite of paintings along with Milton Avery, Felix Vallotton and Eduart Vuillard to name a few of the many artists I regularly study.
Q & Photography : Isabella Imperatore, BLACKCAT GALLERY
Interview with artist: Simon Linardi
1. Your work frequently references masks and faces, what is the meaning behind this motif?
The masks are expressionist assemblages, they were pieces together using scrap pieces of plywood, to allow for the features to express different motifs within the faces : to offer a diorama of the mind: a kind of miniaturesque world with characters in it that compose each mask. Each character’s expression is derived by a series of different forces & these forces are psychological
In this way the work can be traced to elements that make up the whole. In this show i wanted to make work about spirituality and find ways to explore how that is composed.
Masks symbolise many meanings, rituals and beliefs in different cultures. These masks pertain to the grotesquely & psychological derangement of the covid world.
2. Your work seems to occupy the space between painting and tapestry, can you speak to this stylistic decision?
This ‘scrolls’ or tapestries are provocations about unity & seeking a spiritual path- a religious scripture may have once be unrolled and presented to and audience in ancient times - allowing for ultimate movement in a nomadic sense. I want these works to present the enchanted nature of spiritual belief & to present the imagery that lies beyond this world. The tapestry in both western and eastern cultures is a storytelling device- in these paintings, we have a chance to imagine the symbolism and hidden meaning that can be derived from the abstract elements within.
Q & Photography : BLACKCAT GALLERY & Isabella Imperatore