‘Lure of the Sun: Charles Blackman in Queensland’, an exhibition at the Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) features over 50 paintings and works on paper drawn from more than 12 private and state collections. The exhibition reveals a captivating narrative about the development of one of the nation’s most revered artists, exploring the connections and friendships Blackman forged while living in the ‘Sunshine State’ and the impact they had on his artistic practice.
Sydney-born Blackman first ventured to Queensland in 1948 where he was welcomed by several notable friends and creative locals, including artist Laurence Hope, and future wife Barbara Patterson. Further relationships also developed between Blackman and artists Sidney Nolan, Jon Molvig, and others at Brisbane-based Miya Studio; poet Judith Wright and philosopher husband Jack McKinney, as well as the Barjai writers; gallery owners Marjorie and Brian Johnstone; modernist architect James Birrell; and Frank Thompson from the University of Queensland Press. These relationships were central to the development of Blackman’s creative oeuvre and his practice in the 1950s, late 1960s and the 1980s.
This heterogeneous group of personalities introduced Blackman to the beauty of the region, both historical and natural. Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) Associate Curator of Australian Art, Michael Hawker, has stressed the importance of these artistic ties, “Regardless of vocation, they shared a deep appreciation and love of the arts, and their mutual interests supported and fed Blackman’s creative process.”
Through images of the surreal, Blackman depicted women and flowers, children in reverie, and the anthropomorphic fantasy world of Alice, which formed the renowned ‘Schoolgirls’, ‘Faces and flowers’ and ‘Alice’ series. These significant works, executed in the 1950s, form a significant part of the exhibition alongside these works are those by Blackman’s contemporaries Laurence Hope, Laurence Collinson and Jon Molvig.
Blackman’s drawings retain a vitality and immediacy that focus on the human presence in relation to the external environment, externalising all that is internal. Paradoxically he deals with anguish through opportunity, a reflection of the autobiographical nature of his practice. Blackman’s subjects were the people he knew. Their presence is apparent in works such as The family (1955) depicting a picnic near Cedar Falls at Mt Tamborine with Judith Wright, Jack McKinney and their daughter, Meredith. Blackman also painted the ‘Alice’ series for his wife, giving “sight to her poetry”. The blue shroud on her eyes is symbolic to her poor eyesight and synonymous with Nolan’s Ned Kelly mask.
Blackman’s use of tempera, oil and enamel paint gave him the freedom to work with a particular intensity. He created works with eccentric compositions and bold colours, producing challenging images that are simultaneously whimsical and psychologically disquieting.
Blackman’s artistic individuality and Antipodean perceptions of reality are effectively employed to create haunting micro-worlds and challenge the onlooker to reassess their place in their own environment.
Queensland Art Gallery (QAG)
Until 31 January, 2016
Queensland
