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Peranakan II, 2012. Watercolour, ink and acrylic on paper. 172
x 140 cm
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Thornton
Walker is a Melbourne based visual artist, whose practice explores memory,
stillness and nostalgia. Since his first solo exhibition in 1980, Walker has
exhibited widely, and his works are held in both national and international
collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, Art Gallery of NSW,
Parliament House, and the British Museum.
Walker
produced his latest body of work Koay
teow th’ng, while undertaking an artist’s residency in Penang, Malaysia. In
this exhibition, Walker mediates on the past through capturing the faded faces
that decorate Penang’s temple walls. Through his characteristic use of
photography, the artist translates atmospheric images into watercolour, ink,
acrylic and oil paint. The intimately cropped works suggest a quiet fragility and
passage of time, though their ink stained and spattered surfaces.
In Koay teow th’ng, Walker gently mocks our
enthusiasm for the allure of foreign cultures. With a wry irreverence, the
artist contrasts his dreamy portraits with unrelated Chinese characters. In his
Nonya girl image, the script reads “lychee in heavy syrup.” The banality of the
text belies the atmospheric and romantic portrait. Indeed, the title of the exhibition
takes its name from a popular noodle soup dish sold at road side stall in
Malaysia.
Come and join us for the opening at 6pm, November 9.
Koay teow th’ng runs until December 1st.
