Gow Langsford Gallery presented a dramatic new offering from internationally acclaimed Australian artist Dale Frank (b. 1959) from 7 April - 4 May 2022. The gallery was reimagined as a dark space, inviting an unfamiliar perspective for viewing this new vibrant collection of paintings.
Within his practice, Frank consistently subverts the medium of painting through embracing its materiality in newfound ways. His approach ignores the use of a paintbrush and traditional paints, rather embracing hand-pigmented resins that are smoothly poured and scraped upon a background of Perspex. In this new body of work Frank pushes his traditional techniques to create huge depths within these surfaces, often extending to sculptural forms on the surface of the work. These paintings are created through an interplay of deliberate action and chance, as the liquid resin takes on a life of its own, before settling into its final resting place.
There is a sense of movement within these works as though they might continue to shape-shift before our eyes. This is further amplified by the highly reflective surface of the works, which interplays with the changing light of the day and night. Frank has always been interested in how paintings can exist outside of human perception - as a unique entity, living out its days irrespective of those who gaze upon it. They don’t necessarily require context to be understood, rather being their own personality.
Video by Hugo Stewart.
