SHAUN Atkinson’s exhibition, Saint Alouran Place, opens at the Greenhill Galleries on February 1.
The combination of paintings, drawings and sculpture is based on
the Western Australian landscape, particularly that around the Margaret River region.
Shaun explores the way light and shadow affect and contrast landforms. The paintings and sculpture create a dynamic visual experience of time, place and shadow.
The works emphasise the aesthetic appeal to art and reflect the unique beauty of the Margaret River and other Western Australian landscapes.
Shaun uses rich, contrasting colour to create the depth to his pieces and to enhance the juxtaposition of light and dark forms.
Using toning, he is able to portray the contrasting beauty of the region that we all know and cherish.
Shaun predominantly uses shadow, which conveys a silence and insolation that is often associated with the Australian landscape.
The shadows also represent the territories of the unconscious and subconscious mind.
Sculptures presented in Saint Alouran Place represent the human spirit but metaphorically bind that to nature.
Both the figures and the bases from which they emerge are carved from the same piece of wood, creating an undeniable and unbreakable link between humankind and nature.
The sculptures build on the depth portrayed in Shaun’s drawings and paintings.
The tall, slender figures cast long shadows that move and distort because of the constant change of light.
This also conveys an immediate sense of the impact of time and space on the human spirit.
Shaun Atkinson’s exhibition opens on February 1 and will be on display until February 20 at the Greenhill Galleries in King Street, Perth.