JAMES McGRATH
OCULAR/SPECULO
'Kaleidoscope' is comprised of the Greek words kalos, meaning ‘beautiful’, eidos meaning ‘form’, and skopein meaning ‘to look at’. It also describes the mesmeric and visually seductive designs that feature in James McGrath's latest body of work. Stepping away from the massive, rectangular canvases McGrath is known for, his latest exhibition features circular works that resemble glass orbs reflecting a room filled with flowers. When the orb is shattered, the room breaks into shards that become an alluring kaleidoscopic design. Ocular/Speculo offers a glimpse into an ornate, Baroque world, an era unafraid of multimedia experimentation. Like the 16th and 17th century classical masters painters, McGrath plays with classical spatial techniques and contemporary 3D programing to create a world with endless possibilities for reinvention.
25 May – 12 June 2016
Cover: James McGrath, Studies for Speculo, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to 16 individual boards, 30cm diameter each
James McGrath, Speculo II, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 150 x 130cm
James McGrath, Speculo VI, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 150 x 130cm
James McGrath, Speculo V, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 150 x 130cm
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs X, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 148 x 198cm
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs XII, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 145cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs XIII, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 135cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs VII, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 90cm diameter
James McGrath, Ex Libris Fleurs II, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 180 x 186cm
James McGrath, Studies for Speculo, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to 16 individual boards, 30cm diameter each
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs XI, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 60cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs X, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 60cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Fleurs VI, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 60cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Gold I, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 60cm diameter
James McGrath, Ocular Gold II, 2016, oil on canvas mounted to board, 60cm diameter
James McGrath Born in Sydney in 1969, McGrath studied the techniques and principles of the sixteenth- and seventeenth-century masters at the studio school of Patrick Betaudier in Paris. Before graduating as an architect he worked as a studio assistant with Australia’s greatest expressionist painter, Arthur Boyd. While a lecturer in design and communications at New South Wales University, he was awarded several prizes for architecture and art, including the Australian Postgraduate Award and a residency in Paris. Over the last ten years he has exhibited in New York, London, Sydney and Paris. He has also produced highly original acclaimed digital installations and videos commissioned by several Australian museums and subsequently presented at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, in 2000. In 1999 and 2000 his work was included in the Sydney and New York film festivals.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS: 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 !2006 !2005 2004
2003 2002 !2001 2000
Ocular/Speculo, Olsen Irwin, Sydney Ocular/Fleur, Cat St Gallery, Hong Kong Ocular/Fleurs, Olsen Irwin, Sydney Olsen Irwin at Melbourne Art Fair Lacuna/Anamnesis, Olsen Irwin, Sydney Marnling Press Group Show, Maitland Regional Art Gallery Ex Libris, Tim Olsen Gallery, Sydney! Cranium, Artereal Gallery, Group Show, Sydney Chiaroscuro, Artereal Gallery, Group Show, Sydney CarriageARTworks, Carriageworks, group show, Sydney Sculpture by the Sea, Sydney! Tim Olsen Gallery, Sydney! Pozzo's Shadow, Gibsone Jessop Gallery, Toronto, Canada 400 Years, Gibsone Jessop Gallery, Toronto, Canada Variations on Baroque Ceilings, Michael Carr Art Gallery, Sydney, Australia Solo painting exhibition Vision & Verse, Nevill Keating Gallery, London, video and digital prints Baroque Ensembles, MCG Galleries, Solo show of paintings, video and digital prints New York Quadrautura, Michael Carr Art Gallery, Sydney Dutchscapes, MCG Galleries, Solo show of paintings, video and digital prints New York Infra-red Baroque, Michael Carr art gallery, Sydney Tugboat film and video series: “Tidal vectors”, NYC, Railroad Barge at Pier 63! J. Paul Getty Museum & Laguna Art Museum, "Baroque and modernity", Screening of “Theatres of anatomy" Museum of Sydney “Harbour/Metropolis” Audio Visual installation 'Tidal vectors'! Michael Carr Art Gallery, Sydney, "Cusp - a study of
1999
1998 1996 1995
folds and flora",! National Digital Art Awards Group Show, Queensland Museum of modern Art, Brisbane, Sydney City Exhibition space, Customs House, "motion eye" and "city draped" Audio/visual installations Sydney Film Festival, "Theatres of anatomy", digital animation D.art 99, Twin Academy, Paddington, Sydney Sculpture by The Sea festival, "CUSP#2", Site specific digital performance, Tamarama Beach, Sydney, Australia Queen Street Fine Art, Sydney, Solo Exhibition Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris, Solo Exhibition Queen Street Fine Art, Sydney, Solo Exhibition
AWARDS/PRIZES: 2003 1999 1998 1997 1996 1990
Blake Finalist Exhibition, Sydney NSW Ministry of Arts Project grant Australian Arts Council new media Commission, Sydney 1st Class Honours UNSW, B.Arch. National Digital Art Award, Brisbane! Sculpture By the Sea Directors Award (video installation) Australian Post Graduate Award! Moya Goring Paris Studio residency, Cite des Arts, Paris Bioloa International Design Award
MUSEUM COMMISSIONS: 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998
Customs House, "Digital Hall of Mirrors", City Exhibition Space Sydney “Titians” gaze, Korossy residence, New York! Museum of Sydney "Tidal Vectors", Harbour / Metropolis Exhibtion" Customs House "City drape" City Exhibition Space, Sydney "BTF" East Circular Quay The Colonnade Sydney "Wink" Cnr. Bligh and Hunter Street Sydney CBD"
PUBLISHED/REPRODUCED: 2011 2008 !2003 2001
Unpacking the Painted Library, The Australian Financial Review, Brooke Turner, 22/9/2011 James McGrath, Spectrum, The Sydney Morning Herald, 11/10/2008 Art Review Magazine, London, Feb/ March, Artist Profile! Sydney: metropolis/ suburb /harbour, Peter Emmett, Museum of Sydney book on series of exhibitions in which the work “tidal vectors” The Australian, “Medium subverts message”, Benjamin Genocchio
JAMES McGRATH OCULAR/SPECULO 25 May – 12 June 2016 View full exhibition and price list here.
63 Jersey Road Woollahra NSW 2025 Australia T. (02) 9327-3922 | info@olsenirwin.com | www.olsenirwin.com