Have a flick through the official exhibition catalogue.
Illustrator and digital artist GWA (aka Wade Goring) presents PROFOUND ABSURDITY, the latest batch of his weird and wild creations. Drawing inspiration from a myriad of sources including comics, street art, advertising, social media, queer culture and religious myths, GWA’s work could be categorised as pop surrealism through the lens of the gay male sensibility - if you wanna get pretentious about it.
“The weirder the better” the artist says in describing his work. “We are living in absurd times. So much around us doesn’t make any sense - from who our leaders are to the decisions that they make - to the continued ignorance of the human race regarding our impending extinction from climate change inaction - to the rise of far right ideology and it’s subversion of free speech and freedom of religion. It is the height of hypocrisy.”
He continues “I think my work reflects our world’s absurdity. There’s often a contradiction in what I’m presenting, largely in the use of bright appealing colours. Beyond the colours is a darker concept or idea. There is shock and humour but I hope meaning is imparted as well”.
Regarding his practice, the artist says, “From my experience, ‘digital art’ is still a mystery to many people, including the art world establishment. I look forward to when digital artists start winning major Australian art prizes. At exhibitions and arts fairs I’m used to people asking me how I create my works and saying, ‘so the computer made it’. I don’t take offence (well, not too much!). Its a relatively new medium but it’s rapidly on the rise.
By exhibiting my work in a gallery space I hope that it will help alter the perception of what digitally produced art can look like and the ideas it can express while still being art you might want to hang on your wall”.
