Craig Handley - 'The Trappings' Catalogue 2017

Craig Handley, Young Man South or the First Summer (2017), Oil on canvas, 112 x 122cmm

THE TRAPPINGS CRAIG HANDLEY 26 JULY - 12 AUGUST 2017

THE TRAPPINGS CRAIG HANDLEY Opening Night: Wednesday 26 July, 6 - 8pm 26 July - 12 August 2017, Tue-Sat 10am-5pm 76 Paddington St Paddington NSW 2021 RSVP 02 9660 7799 or via Eventbrite

Craig Handley is a Sydney based artist renowned for his images of suburban Australian life that playfully challenge the nuance of narrative. Handley's works are at once vibrant and subdued, busy and quiet, which is where their intrigue lies. Handley's pieces depict a dichotomy between what is known and what is unknown, as well as what is normal and what is bizarre. The space between these places has come to be synonymous with his washed back pastel palette. Paired together these elements certify his status as a master storyteller through painting.

The iconic traits of Craig Handley's works are clearly visible in his latest exhibition, The Trappings. In this collection the narrative focal point retains its ambiguity in a present and future context. Handley conveys this clearly in The Trappings 2018. Viewers see a house perched on a sandy beach with a couch placed outside and a set of stairs that stretch out beyond the confines of the canvas, leading to a place we cannot see. The stairs seem foreboding, however one cannot help but be curious as to where they might lead. Similarly, the ocean waves in the background are inviting as much as they are ominous. By skewing perspective in this way, Handley's paintings successfully create a subtle and deceptive sense of mystery that crosses the borders of time.

The largest work in the series, Funland 2017 echoes The Trappings 2018 in symbolism and storytelling techniques. In this work Handley uses a flat washed back pastel palette to reveal part of a story whilst allowing viewers to decide which direction the story takes. In this piece the wall of an amusement park fill the foreground. The sheer scale of the wall is exaggerated by a small figure at the base of a ladder jutted against it. Glimpses of the rides and attractions sit closely behind the wall whilst aluminium balloons merge with large fluffy clouds set in the background. The effect of Handley's flat perspective and imagery draws viewers into the piece and creates a sense of mystery. Viewers cannot help but wonder what the full picture is behind the wall: what can the birds see from their vantage point above? What awaits at the base of the slide in the paintings centre?

The Trappings cements Craig Handley's ability to conjure the relationship between the present and the future in it's beauty and uncertainty. Using his celebrated technique of revealing fragments of a tale through a washed out palette, The Trappings showcases Handley's creative skill and unquestionable talent at recreating the world we live in with a dystopian twist.

Words by Claire Dalgleish, Sydney-based visual arts writer and curator The Trappings opens on Wednesday 26 July 2017, 6 - 8pm, and runs until Saturday 12 August 2017.

CRAIG HANDLEY Craig Handley (b. 1964) has been shortlisted as a finalist in notable art prizes no less that 69 times in the last decade. Handley was born and raised in the southern suburbs of Sydney and on leaving school went to do a sign-writing apprenticeship. It was here that the draftsman like perfection we now see in Craig’s painting was honed.

Craig Handley went on to further sharpen his skill and learn the craft of defining a narrative with a successful career in animation, working for a number of the largest studios in the world. In 2004 Handley had his “John Register” moment, leaving animation to ply his skills purely to painting.

Craig Handley works sparingly in oil to produce images of immense poise and delight. In his own words Handley sees his work simply as “a medley, a collage of all the things I come across while travelling about. They are rearrangements, a hodgepodge of places and objects and light.” In reality they are so much more. His collective visual snapshots allow his works to transcend genres and blur the lines between, realism and surrealism, narrative and observation. This is summed up best by the notable Australian Critic John McDonald when writing of Handley’s painting in the Salon Des Refuses; “Some of the Salon pictures are so strange they defy description, let alone classification. Nothing is more peculiar than Craig Handley’s cryptically titled selfportrait, Thank You Mr Fante. Does he mean John Fante, the American writer? It probably wouldn’t help with a reading of this picture, even if I knew. Handley has portrayed himself with the arms of a plastic action figure, standing alongside a pink suburban bungalow from which the face of Salvador Dali peeks out. A flock of cockatoos flies overhead while two midget black swans float on the aboveground pool. Rather than a self-portrait, one might call this a “conversation piece…”

Artist Craig Handley with his 2015 Kogarah Art Prize winning painting

Craig Handley Funland 2017 (2017) Oil on linen 153 x 168cm

Craig Handley Clareville House (Fred’s hood) (2017) Oil on linen 137 x 152cm

Craig Handley Young Man South or the First Summer (2017) Oil on linen 112 x 122cm

Craig Handley Old Man South or the Last Summer (2017) Oil on linen 112 x 122cm

Craig Handley The Trappings (2017) Oil on linen 112 x 122cm

Craig Handley The Trappings 2020 (2017) Oil on linen 112 x 122cm

Craig Handley The Trappings Late 2017, the Rethink (2017) Oil on linen 112 x 122cm

Craig Handley The Dog and the Coast #4 (2017) Oil on linen 56 x 123cm

Craig Handley The Trappings 2018 (2017) Oil on linen 56 x 92cm

Craig Handley The Trappings 1964 (2017) Oil on linen 56 x 92cm

Craig Handley The Trappings 1973 (2017) Oil on linen 56 x 92cm

Craig Handley The Dog and The Coast #2 (2016) Oil on linen 61 x 76cm

Craig Handley Holiday (Inn) (2017) Oil on linen 62 x 66cm

Craig Handley Greetings (2016) Oil on linen 61 x 61cm

Craig Handley The Uncertain Age (2017) Oil on linen 50 x 50cm

Craig Handley Nowra (2016) Oil on canvas 50 x 50cm

Craig Handley The Uncritical Moment (2017) Oil on canvas 46 x 46cm

Craig Handley (Holiday) Inn (2017) Oil on linen 38 x 38cm

Craig Handley The Indifference of Chlorine (2017) Oil on linen 36 x 41cm

ARTIST CV

CRAIG HANDLEY 1964 Born Sydney, Australia 1980 Completed Sign-writing apprenticeship 1983 Began career in the animation industry 1993 Director/producer of numerous children’s television series 2004 Painting

SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2017 The Trappings, Piermarq, Sydney 2016 Anomalies, Anthea Polson Art, Queensland 2015 Roadside, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2012 Miscellaneous, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2010 Roadtrip, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2008 Lucky, Richard Martin Art, Sydney GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2013 MMXIII, Director’s Edition, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2012 Summertide, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2010 A Taste of What’s to Come, Gallows Gallery, Perth WA 2010 Winter, Richard Martin Art, Sydney 2004 Newport Artworks, Newport NSW

AWARDS & PRIZES 2017 Whyalla Art Prize (finalist) 2017 Gallipoli Art Prize (finalist) 2017 Calleen Art Prize, Cowra (finalist) 2016 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2016 Bruny Island Art Prize, Tasmania, (finalist) 2016 WYNNE Prize, Sydney, (finalist) 2016 Lethbridge Art Prize, Queensland (finalist) 2016 Stanthorpe Art Festival 2016 Calleen Art Prize, Cowra (finalist) 2016 Glencore Percival Portrait Painting Prize 2016 Gallipoli Art Prize 2016 Noosa Art Prize, (finalist) 2016 39th Alice Prize, (finalist) 2015 KAAF Art Prize, Sydney, (finalist) 2015 Blacktown City Art Prize, (finalist) 2015 Gold Coast City Art Prize, (finalist) 2015 ANL Award, Victoria, (finalist) 2015 Moran Portrait Prize (semi-finalist) 2015 Paddington Art Prize, (finalist) 2015 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2015 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2015 Salon Des Refuses, Sydney (selected) 2015 NSW Parliament Plein Air Painting Prize, Sydney (semi-finalist) 2015 Kogarah Art Prize, Winner 2015 Caller Art Prize, Cowra (finalist) Highly Commended 2015 43rd Muswellbrook Art Prize 2014 Gold Coast City Art Prize 2014 Sulman Prize, AGNSW, (finalist) 2014 Salon Des Refuses, Sydney (selected) 2014 NSW Parliament Plein Air Painting Prize, Sydney (finalist) 2014 Calleen Art Prize, Cowra (finalist) 2013 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2013 Paddington Art Prize, (finalist) 2013 Fleurieu Art Prize, SA

2013 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2013 North Sydney Art Prize, Sydney 2013 NSW Parliament Plein Air Painting Prize, Sydney (finalist) 2013 Calleen Art Prize, Cowra (finalist) 2013 Muswellbrook Art Prize (finalist) 2012 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2012 Mortimore Prize (finalist) 2012 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2012 Lethbridge Art Prize, Queensland (finalist) 2012 Gallipoli Art Prize 2011 Whyalla Art Prize SA (finalist) 2011 Paddington Art Prize, (finalist) 2011 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2011 Black Swan Prize for Portraiture, Perth (finalist) 2011 North Sydney Art Prize, Sydney 2011 Salon Des Refuses, Sydney (selected) 2011 Lethbridge Art Prize, Queensland (finalist) 2010 Paddington Art Prize, (finalist) 2010 Redland Art Awards, Qld (finalist) 2010 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2010 Moran Portrait Prize (finalist) 2010 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2010 Stanthorpe Art Prize, Qld (finalist) 2009 Blake Prize (Director’s Cut) 2009 Eutick Memorial Still Life Award, Coffs Harbour NSW (finalist) 2009 Paddington Art Prize (finalist) 2008 Blake Prize (finalist) 2008 Mosman Art Prize (finalist) 2008 Salon Des Refusés, Sydney (selected) 2007 Paddington Art Prize (finalist) 2007 Salon Des Refusés, Sydney (selected) 2006 Paddington Art Prize (finalist) 2006 Mosman Art Prize (finalist)

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