5 August - 19 September 2021
about the exhibition
Graham Fransella is a highly acclaimed painter, printmaker and sculptor who continues to explore the figure and the landscape in an exuberant, graphic style. His multi-layered abstractions, characterised by bold lines and vibrant colour, are the distillation of several decades of draughtsmanship. Known for the strong black strokes that trace the outlines of his figures, Graham’s current work continues to negotiate the boundary between representation and abstraction, this time embracing a more gestural and spontaneous approach to subject matter. For Graham, the creative process has always informed the conceptual content of his work: ‘In the activity of picture-making, randomness, spontaneity, chance, accident and mark making play out their role to arrive at a resolution.” This exhibition also features Graham’s bronze sculptures, which transform the iconic figures from his two-dimensional work into three-dimensional forms who playfully dance and cartwheel upon their wooden plinths. There is a wonderful flatness to Graham’s bronze figures, which hints at their origins on paper. Above all, Graham’s distinctive works use the “presence of human form and the absence of personal identity” to portray the human condition.
Graham Fransella has had over fifty solo shows across Australia as well as Europe. He has been exhibiting with Beaver Galleries since 1993, including twelve solo exhibitions and representation at the Melbourne Art Fair. His work has been selected for the Archibald, Wynne, Sulman and Dobell Drawing Prizes at the Art Gallery of NSW and he has won the Trustees Watercolour Prize five times, most recently in 2011. Graham’s work is represented in many public collections including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, Queensland Art Gallery, Parliament House and Artbank.
Please note, due to the recent lockdown in the ACT, we are presenting these works to you online until restrictions ease. Please view the exhibition via the video below and then scroll down to look at individual images.
