IN THE GALLERY: Plots and Grounds

Joel Arthur

18 Apr - 18 May 2024

Plots and Grounds is Joel Arthur’s first solo show with THIS IS NO FANTASY.

The boundaries between representation and abstraction merge and blur in Joel Arthur’s paintings, making them feel at once familiar and foreign. Nature, constructed forms, and everyday subjects intersect on the canvas, in works that constantly tread the line between fantasy and reality – often with a psychedelic twist.

Arthur’s practice concentrates on faux-natural parks and gardens to discuss ownership, the division and development of land, and the modification of place through time. Importantly, the urban park is always in a state of flux – a green space protected and maintained by local government which sets the stage for a vast range of social activities. This theatrical green space remains an urban oasis with its boundaries defined, while at its perimeter the city shifts and changes in progress.

Referencing art history, particularly modernism, and perceptual painting, Arthur’s observations of his local surroundings are filtered and disrupted through his studio processes. The artificial spaces in his imagery fused with fabricated still life structures and at times more abstracted forms, draw attention to the false and multiple ways that culture and histories can be narrated while mediated through painting.

Please email info@thisisnofantasy.com for an exhibition catalogue