Ruby Chew- Spitting Image; honest reflections in paint.

I was lucky enough to attend the opening of Ruby Chew’s latest exhibition “Spitting Image” at Hill Smith Gallery on Wednesday night. I have heard a lot of good things about this new up and coming artist who is an honours graduate from the Adelaide Central School of Art. She also exhibited at the Helpmann Academy exhibition in 2011; and this was where I was first able to view her work.

Spitting image is flooded with colour; Ruby’s portraits are bold and full of life. They step out of the canvas and greet you, and at the same time invite you in for a closer look.

“Scott” 2012, is a portrait of a young Blond-haired man with a short moustache. He is shown bare-chested on a turquoise background with a red glitter circle behind his head. His arms are covered with tattoos; depicting what looks to be the Japanese Imperial Palace in Tokyo painted in a traditional Sumi-e style.  It is from this tattoo that the turquoise colour has been lifted to serve as the matt background. Scott is shown on an angle to the viewer, not quite three-quarter. The composition is formal; the solid red glitter ring accentuates the facial features and directs the eye over the painted arms and about the bright cherry red beads. The tonal qualities of the skin have been painted with great adherence to detail.

There is an element of contrast in the work; the soft tones of the skin in comparison to the matt tones of the background enhance the flesh.  While red circular shapes are repeated.

In Ruby Chew’s work there is a certain air of vulnerability and honesty. She shows her subject gently holding an object typically associated with femininity. The circle in the background is a halo and gives us an insight into the man. His eyes stare quietly out at us; his facial features are soft and thoughtful. Beads are often symbols of prayer. What is Scott praying for? As he holds these beads in his open hands he also reveals that he is open for a response.

Jude is a portrait of a young woman; her face has been painted with red paint. Four dots garnish each of her eyes. In the middle of her forehead is an inverted triangle. She is bare shouldered wearing a pink and red dress; painted with flat colour it stands out in comparison with her skin. In the background Ruby has placed another red triangle on a maroon background. This triangle points up, in contrast to the one on Jude’s forehead, extending almost to the top of the canvas.

She is a beautiful woman, with flashing green eyes that stare out as she stands in an angled pose. The look she gives us seems to be one of tentative curiosity. Her eyes contrast strongly with the red of her body paint, attracting our gaze to them.

The red triangle is symbolic of many things, though in this case it could be viewed as a symbol for fire.  The fire in her eyes and in her features has been captured with bold confidence. Again there is simple honesty in this work that entrances us. It directs us to want to know more. What is this fire that is apparent in “Jude”? In what way does it drive her? These questions are not so easily answered by staring at this work though we continue to do so.

Ruby Chew in this exhibition has painted, “painted” people. Many of her subjects have been decorated with tattoos, piercings jewellery. Normally such things are signs of people how have a rough exterior; however in Ruby’s subjects we see a gentle, honest human side. She opens up her subject in the painting to expose them in a truly beautiful way. The exhibition is open until the 24^th of November.

http://rubychewart.blogspot.com.au

http://www.hillsmithgallery.com.au/

The thrilling work of Jan Van Dijk

Jan Van Dijk is a Queensland artist, and has lived in Brisbane since he was four. His painting style has its roots in street art and is energetic, thick paint envelopes the space. Bright bold colour drags the eye to and fro; each work is a cavalcade of interesting marks. There is always something to interest the eye in Van Dijk’s unique turbid works.  His exhibition is currently showing at Greenhill Galleries in North Adelaide and is titled “Thrill of All Thrills”. It is predominantly a collection of works examining the amusement park Ferris wheel and roller coaster. Jan Van Dijk is a true exponent of mixed media exploration. Scratching and pushing his subject matter, Jan uses oil paint onto wet aerosol and etches pencil and pastel lines upon his surfaces. The textural eccentricity and playfulness of his drawn lines; through both pastel and graphite, create a sense of chaos and depth. While his contrasting thick daubs of oil paint, freeze the eye and cause it to look deeper into the work.

Cyclone 9, 2012 is a coloured silhouette of the Cyclone roller coaster from Coney Island in the USA. It is one of the original wooden roller coasters with steep drops and savage turns that offered its patrons an exciting thrill. It was a ride to remember. Van Dijk has sought to capture its essence in this work which highlights the complex structure. The use of negative space in this work is its defining feature as a white aerosol has been sprayed over the complex forms to contain the piece. The deep contrasts of Van Dijk’s shapes pull the eye about. Energising it with colour and propelling it about the space. There is a pleasant balance in this work through the use of repeated curves and white highlighted text and line. This stops this painting from getting out of control. I find the use of text in an artwork rather loud, yet it is balanced in this piece by the use of white negative space and serves as a resting place for the eye. Life is a constant roller coaster, with a myriad of twists and turns. There are inevitable ups and downs but it is full of colour and excitement. We ride it not knowing how it will end, and that is the thrill of it.

“Wonder wheel 37, 2011” is a work based on the Ferris wheel at Coney Island. It is unusual in that it is an “eccentric” Ferris wheel which means the covered passenger cars are able to slide as the wheel turns from the rim toward the centre and back again. It is a feature of Deno’s Coney Island amusement park. This work places the viewer on an angle to the wheel, exposing the rim and the steel structure. Van Dijk’s wonder wheel is an uneasy piece; the movement transmitted is not altogether contained by the use of negative space, as in his other works. Textural lines expose themselves through the stencilled aerosol and continue to spin. The eye attaches itself to the ride and it is difficult to get off! Bright colour whirls throughout the shapes. This work however, incorporates a black stencilled framework on the lower portion of the wheel. This anchors the forms to the base of the picture.  Again, the use of text in this work serves to lock the viewer’s gaze; momentarily providing it with respite from the swirling mass of seething shape and energy.

Wonder Wheel speaks to me of the cycle of existence; the dribbles and haphazard brushwork of energy and chaos. This wheel is something we must all cling to and ride.

Jan Van Dijk’s works speak to us from the warm summer world of the Amusement park; something that most of us may rarely experience, yet we are all familiar with.  As a Queenslander, Van Dijk would be well familiar with the attraction of theme parks.  The excitement of the ride is a beautiful analogy to the inevitable ups and downs of life. This show continues til the 7^th of August at Greenhill Galleries in North Adelaide and is well worth a visit.

Greenhill Galleries Adelaide