SPACE 1 : FREYA SKARSGARD & GEORGIA LAURIE
Exhibition dates. 21 Sept - 2 Oct 2022
Opening Reception : Thur 22 Sept 2022, 6:00 - 8.30pm.
Images: (left to right) Freya Skarsgard, Georgia Laurie
In-between worlds by Freya Skarsgard
Freya’s artistic research is concerned with the role of contemporary sublime as a means of processing personal experiences that may be acquired in the dialogue of human and phenomena of nature (‘divine’, or ‘more than human’).
Freya is specifically interested in the encounters with the natural world. When being influenced by the reality of physical momentum the spectator perceives a spectrum of subtle but strong emotional reflections which can be paralleled with the harshness of rapid social and ecological shifts of contemporaneity. She considers experiencing the feeling of awe as a starting point for one’s ability to deepen the genuine connection with the planet.
Represented in the form of deities, clothed in human form, this ancient image has been known to mankind for many centuries. In her paintings, Freya shows us a rare moment of encounter between mere mortal man with a god in a human likeness. This moment traditionally interprets a possible origin of how the natural lore was acquired by humans. Looking back to our mythical and literal legacy, deities may bestow new knowledge to people in exchange for their own unfathomable goals.
In this body of work, Freya aims to convey the imagery of nature in two forms – a dreamscape-based re-interpretation of the natural environment and through the anthropomorphic image of nature that often appears as a deity. Fluctuating in between these two modes of perception, Freya articulates the duality and complexity of the divine bond of mankind and Nature.
Georgia Laurie
Fundamentally my work is about myself, the sitter and everything in-between. The paintings that I have made as a apart of the ‘In Between Two worlds’ show dwell on the solo effort of navigating through the world at a time of uncertainty and isolation. At once reminiscent of both a dystopia and a dreamscape, the paintings take the viewer on a serene journey through the feeling of being alone with one’s thoughts. By turns contemplative and at times playful, the paintings are an imagined vision of our current world. The subjects portrayed stand strong, traversing the chaos suggested by the barren landscapes. I explore the elegance, sophistication, and power of femininity, whilst also conveying a sense of vulnerability and self-examination. These ideas bind together to create a narrative that is vivid yet strange, mysterious, and atmospheric.
Though self-isolation has forced us to beat a path through rugged terrain, it is also a way for us to better know ourselves, to find richness in solitude and to reconnect with our inner being. We can shape our sense of grief and loss through expressing contrasting states of being; stillness vs movement, grace vs strength, struggle vs acceptance.
My process starts by first staging a photoshoot, the resulting images are then dissembled through collage to create multiple perspectives within the one composition. When I reach a balance between the found, cut, and created elements in the image, I then begin to construct the painting, using the collage as my guide, building up the density of colour slowly through successive glazes in oil. When producing a body of work, I immersed myself completely in each stage of the process, painting every day as a way of navigating through our complex world
The Artwork
