This exhibition brings together all the available works from Ian Fairweather’s ‘The Drunken Buddha’ series for the first time in almost 50 years. One of Australia’s most important and influential artists, Fairweather held a lifelong fascination with Chinese culture which saw him translate into english the popular Chinese novel ‘The Drunken Buddha’.
A combination of abstraction and figuration joined through a meandering use of the line, Fairweather’s paintings use a limited palette of blacks, greys, blues, pinks and browns. Marks are made in and through layers of paint that are as much in conversation with Chinese calligraphy as they are with Aboriginal mark making. His was a life of journeys, and these experiences pervaded his art practice.
TarraWarra Museum of Art
Until 15 March, 2015
Melbourne
Chi-tien stands on head, 1964, synthetic polymer paint and gouache on cardboard on composition board, 64.8 x 99.1cm (installation view)
Private collection. Photograph: Silversalt Photography
