May 15, 2018
The Compulsive and Playful Line: Expanding Narrative through Abstract and Representative Two Dimensional and Three Dimensional Compositions
Julia Oborne and Cat Madden
Today, in the 21st Century, painting falls into an expanded field of expression pushing from two dimensional to three dimensional planes, shifting from one form of expression or given object to another, and even expecting the possible addition of new visual dimensions. Each of the artists working with paint, who will appearing at Hidden Door 2018, questions and challenges the limitations of their medium.
Julia Oborne’s project for Hidden Door sees the canvas become a theatre where forms flat, sit and blend into the surrounding brushstrokes that explore imaginary forms and fictive space. Julia collects visual stimulus for her project by drawing shapes and objects that make up the subject matter of books, surroundings and other paintings. Recently, Julia’s work has been influenced by Asian art – mostly of Japanese and Thai origin – particularly the ambiguity of old Japanese ink washes where forms are balanced with space.
Cat Madden’s practice is characterised by looking at painting in a time-based context battling material and formal painting concerns within a performative/conceptual cycle. Cat’s paintings have retrospective references – the surface of the works acts as a receptor to traces of action and decision, trial and error. By using the space surrounding the work, in studio or gallery, the walls become an extension of the painting’s surface. What makes Cat’s work distinctive is the playfulness of her compositions, exposing the enjoyment she gets from colour in her work. It is the bright palette that reflects the tension between the restless and equally serious engagement between the artist and artwork.
Both Julia and Cat’s work will be on display in the Leith Theatre.
