Joshua Searle A Year in Retrospect
Kerri Greens
January 13-30 2023
Curated by Emily McCulloch ChildsJoshua Searle is a young Australian/Colombian artist who has gained interest since he first began exhibiting in 2021, holding four solo exhibitions on the Mornington Peninsula and in Melbourne, and has had work included in several group exhibitions in Melbourne and Sydney.
In 2022, he was commissioned by the Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery to produce large-scale painted banners for the gallery’s exterior facade, and held a solo exhibition at Ventana Fiesta, a Latin American Festival (Frankston Arts Centre), alongside leading contemporary Latin American artists.
‘A Year in Retrospect’ celebrates a return to the site of his first solo show, held at Kerri Greens in April-June 2021. This retrospective encompasses a range of works selected by curator Emily McCulloch Childs, which illustrate Searle’s practice of using found and mixed materials. It encompasses his explorations of socio-political commentary, cross-cultural experiences and his internal reflection and contemplation.
McCulloch Childs is a gallerist, curator, writer and art historian. She is co-author of McCulloch’s Encyclopedia of Australian Art and co-director of Everywhen Artspace, Flinders.
EmilyList of works
Monster with Dragon Hands in the Mountains
2022, acrylic, enamel, oil stick, spray paint and oil on board, 200 x 111 cm. $2900
Dragon In City
2022, acrylic, oil stick, enamel, spray paint and oil on linen, 111 x 204 cm. $3300
Faces
2021, acrylic, oil stick, oil pastel, acrylic marker and paper on canvas, 90 x 60 cm. $900
Australian Landscape
2021, acrylic, oil stick and oil pastel on stretch denim on wooden mounts, 90 x 214 cm. $2900
Boxer
2021, acrylic and paper on doors, 201 x 97 cm. $3300
Extinct Hunt
2021, acrylic, oil stick on box panel, 153 x 123 cm. $2800
Beast
2021, acrylic, oil stick, oil pastel on board, 93 x 120 cm. $1800
4 Houses
2022, acrylic and staples on wooden assemblage,105 x 75 cm. $2100
Kangaroo (Portrait of Fabian Brown)
2022, acrylic and oil stick on metal sign, 204 x 111 cm. $2900
Peruvian Boy
2021, acrylic, oil stick and oil pastel on canvas, 150 x 90 cm. $2500
Orange Blue Car
2022, enamel on canvas mounted on board, 153 x 90 cm. $2500
Cultural Fragility,
2021, acrylic, oil stick, oil pastel, tape, glass, 68.5 x 56.5 cm. $700
Self-Portrait in wood
2021, acrylic, oil pastel, hardwood, 152.5 x 26.5 cm. $1200
Monster with Dragon Hands in the Mountains, 2022, acrylic, enamel, oil stick, spray paint and oil on board, 200 x 111 cm. $2900
Dragon In City, 2022, acrylic, oil stick, enamel, spray paint and oil on linen, 111 x 204 cm. $3300
Faces, 2021, acrylic, oil stick, oil pastel, acrylic marker and paper on canvas, 90 x 60 cm. $900
Australian Landscape, 2021, acrylic, oil stick and oil pastel on stretch denim on wooden mounts, 90 x 214 cm. $2900
Boxer, 2021, acrylic and paper on doors, 201 x 97 cm. $3300
Extinct Hunt, 2021, acrylic, oil stick on box panel, 153 x 123 cm. $2800
Kangaroo (Portrait of Fabian Brown), 2022, acrylic and oil stick on metal sign, 204 x 111 cm. $2900
Orange Blue Car, 2022, enamel on canvas mounted on board, 153 x 90 cm.
Self-Portrait in wood, 2021, acrylic, oil pastel, hardwood, 152.5 x 26.5 cm. $1200
Joshua Searle Australian/Colombian
b. 1998
A self-taught artist, Searle’s themes relate to childhood, Black genius, joy, colonisation, urbanisation, cross-cultural experiences, industrialisation and psychology.
Born and raised on the Mornington Peninsula, much of his work explores the inner workings of the mind, memory and childhood experience.
Primarily a painter, using a variety of mediums including acrylic, oil stick, oil pastel, pencil, enamel and spray paint. His work involves an environmental practice of painting on and with found materials, as well as large canvases. His initial explorations of painting were largely sparked by the inspiration of Haitian-Puerto Rican-American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. A particular influence has been Basquiat’s use of colour, cryptic text, challenging contextual aspects, and often immense scale of his works.
Searle explores the diasporic position in contemporary societies founded upon migration and displacement in America and Australia. Searle simultaneously questions confronting issues whilst celebrating Black excellence and the triumphs as well as the struggles found within being a man of colour.
Art has enabled him to explore his Colombian heritage and identity which has brought him to an understanding of the strength that his culture can provide. His South American ancestry enables him to tap into knowledge that is strong and old; it is a beacon of strength.
His first Rye artist shack studio, inspired by Ian Fairweather’s shack on Bribie Island, was hand built with completely found and repurposed materials, even down to using repurposed nails.
Like Fairweather, his travels through Nepal and Sri Lanka led to an interest in exploring art further. He now works from a second larger Rye home studio, which has enabled his work to progress to larger scale paintings and created more dedicated focus for his work.
Searle’s work uses figurative repetitive figures to explore meaning, which shift with the context of each work. One leitmotif, the car, is a symbol of Western consumerist identity and aspects of contemporary life including direction and potential destruction. Another is the dragon, a symbol drawn from childhood, and motifs of Western urbanisation and industrialisation:
