In this new body of works Breen explores the streets of Fitzroy, capturing the early morning light and the iconic walls of the area that are covered in graffiti, in his meticulous oil paintings. While each painting is devoid of people, there is always some evidence of activity – a bike chained up, a door ajar, a glowing neon shop light flashing ‘OPEN’.
In capturing and recontextualising this urban landscape in a gallery setting, Breen is also capturing a social and cultural moment, making further intervention and change impossible. Framing this moment in time, the stillness and quietude expresses both a moment of significance and the promise of possibility.
Flinders Lane Gallery
October 23 to November 10, 2012
Melbourne
Polly, 2012, oil on linen, 107 x 244cm
Courtesy the artist and Flinders Lane Gallery
