From Sharne Wolff…
Taking on a title that means “the discoloured or bluish appearance caused by a bruise, congestion of blood vessels, strangulation etc.”, certainly reduces the expectation for joy or good cheer in Jason Greig’s Lividity. Despite all indications, Grieg’s series of small gothic portraits – some painted in oils, others made as monoprints – are not at all bleak but strangely enchanting. Although as a group they evidence the artist’s preoccupation with mortality, having emerged from a time of personal grief for Greig, his own description of their “sorrow filled nostalgia” is rather apt. Perhaps the most curious painting of the lot, 99 Orchid Avenue depicts a horned figure in an unknown landscape by the sea. Grasping at a tree branch the subject looks back over his shoulder as a yellow flash heads towards him from above. It’s both puzzling and compelling.
Also on display are Joanna Braithwaite’s Crowd Pleaser series of paintings. Ranging from larger works on canvas to a lovely group of small-scale pictures hung salon-style, Braithwaite’s enduring interest in the relationship between animal and human subjects is once again on show. Here, the artist dabbles in her affection for magic and illusion. Animal lovers in particular will enjoy the inelegant exploits of her subjects – like when the tight rope walker in Full House juggles a pack of puppies in his pants or when birds emerge from a woman’s backside in Busted.
Until June 13
Darren Knight Gallery, Waterloo
Pic: Jason Grieg, 99 Orchid Avenue 2015, oil on board, 39.7 x 51 cm (image size), 59.7 x 71 cm (framed) size.
