Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

Fintan Magee Recalls the 2011 Brisbane Floods in “Water World”

Brisbane based Fintan Magee, featured on our blog, became a part of his hometown's graffiti culture in his early teens, but his strong interest in classical painting made him change his creative output. After years of mural painting in and around his homeland, Magee slowly built his international resume, and his surrealist figurative murals can be found around the globe. The images in his large scale murals, paper, and canvas works depict our everyday being through photo-realistic details, juxtaposed with less detailed, sometimes expressive, elements. Covering the relationship between man and nature, his paintings often tell stories of struggle, loss, migration, conflict, with an individual and global state of mind. Magee's upcoming solo show, "Water World", which opens on December 4th at Blackwoods Gallery in Melbourne, revolves around the 2011 floods in Brisbane.

Brisbane based Fintan Magee, featured on our blog, became a part of his hometown’s graffiti culture in his early teens, but his strong interest in classical painting made him change his creative output. Even as a student, his visual language was highly recognizable. He focused on figurative works that explore the depth of human emotions and existential topics in contemporary society. After years of mural painting in and around his homeland, Magee slowly built his international resume, and his surrealist figurative murals can be found around the globe. The images in his large scale murals, paper, and canvas works depict our everyday being through photo-realistic details, juxtaposed with less detailed, sometimes expressive, elements.

Covering the relationship between man and nature, Magee’s paintings often tell stories of struggle, loss, migration, conflict, with an individual and global state of mind. His upcoming solo show, “Water World”, which opens on December 4th at Blackwoods Gallery in Melbourne, revolves around the 2011 floods in Brisbane. His 13 new paintings, process drawings, sculptures, installation and mural share his experience and view of these disastrous events, and address environmental issues on a global scale. Images of people saving their dearest and most precious in the aftermath of the disaster capture intense emotions of uncertainty as well as man’s strong will to overcome such circumstances. By showing regular, every day young people, including himself, facing these unfortunate scenarios, Magee stands up for people worldwide affected by climate change, wars, and other forms of forced displacement. “Water World” will be his first solo show in 2 years and it will stay on view until December 13th, 2015.

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
Bigger is better, unless you’re Slinkachu. The UK-based artist (previously posted on our Tumblr here) started placing his tiny figures around London back in 2006. Slinkachu sources these from a company that supplies model train products, and vintage 1960s toys, which he embellishes for his own purposes. He’s a big fan of artist Chris Ware, whose works also tend to use a vivid color palette and are full of meticulous detail. When we say tiny, we mean barely a centimeter high. Slinkachu has to use a magnifying glass to add details to his little people. If it wasn’t for his compelling photo series, they would be left completely undiscovered to passersby. He has photographed these humorous, miniature scenes all over the world in places like Cape Town, Doha, Berlin, and New York, to name a few. During the course of documenting his work, Slinkachu began to question: Just what happens to art that’s been abandoned on the street?
"I think my aesthetic is kind of a mash-up: realism, graffiti, stencil art, and some moves inspired at times by abstract expressionism," shares Tim Okamura on his latest solo, "Love Strength and Soul". Now on view at Yeelen Gallery in Miami, his show is an exploration of the figure over the past 5 years. Previously featured here, Okamura's New York city women are a mix of traditional portraiture upgraded by personal symbolism and experiences.
Although he is best known for his humorous graffiti and imagery, Kenny Scharf has long been interested in more serious political topics. His solo exhibition "Born Again", opening this Saturday at Honor Fraser gallery, highlights his unique ability to make the mundane more fun. In his latest series, bright and colorful palette and wacky shapes are painted onto repurposed, found art. It's not all fun and games for the artist, who sees his comical approach as an act of defiance.
Los Angeles based street artist Bumblebeelovesyou colors the urban landscape with stencils of children that deliver an important message. Why take the namesake of a bee? This little insect has been attributed to human survival and development because of its role as a pollinator. The bee’s endangerment due to pollution, urbanization, and other factors could mean devastation. Bumblebeelovesyou began with hanging paper mache beehives in phone kiosks, pointing to the link between rising cellphone usage and change in bee migration. Since then, his work has developed into a range of paintings, sculpture, and installations with a social and environmental focus. By telling his personal coming of age story for anyone to see, Bumblebee reminds us of the value of innocence, away from industry and technology.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List