Maryanne Coutts 2017

Maryanne Coutts Jostle 7 - 26 March 2017

AU s T r A l i A N GA l l e r i e s SYDNEY

Top left: Crowd drawing #5 2016 ink on paper 15 x 15 cm; Top right: Crowd drawing #91 2016 ink on paper 15 x 15 cm Above left: Crowd drawing #2 2016 ink on paper 15 x 15 cm; Above right: Crowd drawing #8 2016 ink on paper 15 x 15 cm

AU s T r A l i A N GA l l e r i e s SYDNEY

invites you to the opening

Maryanne Coutts Jostle Tuesday 7 March 2017 6pm to 8pm 15 roylston street Paddington NsW 2021 Artist talk: 2pm Saturday 18 March 2017 Current until sunday 26 March 2017 Open 7 days 10am to 6pm T 02 9360 5177 sydney@australiangalleries.com.au australiangalleries.com.au Member Art Galleries Association of Australia

Front: Big crowd 2017 watercolour on paper 30 x 30 cm

Maryanne Coutts: Jostle

Humans are social creatures. While we sometimes seek solitude to gather our thoughts, we end up returning to the madding crowd for social interaction and companionship.

Crowds take many forms and like the sardined crush on the packed train home are not always pleasant events. While we may share a common goal in this situation, it takes the form of a singular ambition to escape the overheated overpopulated carriage and to return to the sanctuary of our own homes. Being par t of an audience at the football, a concer t or the theatre adds to the shared experience in a palpable way – we feed off the enthusiasm generated by likeminded par ticipants and enjoy the performance in a manner far superior to a solitary viewpoint.

Crowds that gather to admire, witness and celebrate are a par ticular type of social interaction, and create the context of Maryanne Coutts’ exhibition Jostle. Focussing on collected faces, Coutts describes disparate identities drawn to events and occasions with expressions that respond to the ebb and flow of the mass, while possessing individual personality and reaction to a common emotion. Depicted in ink drawings and watercolour paintings on paper the series is typified with multiple reactionary faces, frequently with a single visage maintaining direct eye contact with the viewer creating a focus point of connection. Often por trayed in sepia tones or black and white, examples imbued with saturated striking colour provide stunning contrast with lively chromatic scenes and face painted subjects that engage with their intensity of gaze.

True to name, the jostle and rhythm described in Coutts’ recent works provides a stunning populated visual feast, and an insight to society’s bonding, tolerance and competitive nature.

Caroline Field Curator, Australian Catholic University Ar t Collection December 2016