“Colourful, bold, alive, dynamic, primal; perhaps more daringly I could describe it as "ordered chaos".” Ben Randall
Sydney-based artist Ben Randall is one of around 40 incredible artists taking part in Tyger’s upcoming group show, Living in Another World.
Tyger is beyond excited to welcome the outstanding Sydney-based artist Ben Randall to the gallery for our upcoming abstract landscapes show, Living in Another World.
The show brings together around 40 artists from all over the country to show us the world we know and love through an abstracted lens.
Register now for our opening celebrations of Living in Another World - Saturday 20 April, 2-4pm.
Ahead of the show, Ben told us a little about “ordered chaos” of his work, the magical view that inspires his work, and his hopes viewers of his amazing work find their own stories in his paintings.
How would you describe your work?
“Colourful, bold, alive, dynamic, primal; perhaps more daringly I could describe it as "ordered chaos". At the heart of my work there are emotional meanings, and I paint these themes as best I can by using shapes, colours and markings to create an artwork that firstly speaks to me.”
“Even though there are bold shapes, I enjoy hiding tiny details in my work that requires the viewer to be up close to the work. I love using large strong brush strokes, colours that harmonise with one another, and bold shapes to form my composition.”
“There is absolutely nothing deliberately figurative about my work, yet by using the colours and shapes that I do; there is perhaps a metaphorical hint of symbolism that could be construed to linking a literal representation an image within my work.”
“Ultimately it is just paint on a canvas.
Tell us about where and how you create your work?
“I have a beautiful home in the Hawkesbury region of NSW; and I am very fortunate to have a studio that sits on the lower ground floor of the house. The house sits above 500m above sea level, and on a sunny afternoon you have a view straight over Sydney. The afternoon sun often hits the city skyscrapers and they sparkle off in the distance.”
“Of a night time, all I can see is the bright city lights, far off in the distance. It is a magical view and wonderful place to live. I can stand outside my studio for hours gazing off in the distance, and procrastinating my next brush stroke.”
“My work starts in my scrapbook, where the concept of the work is formed, and roughly drawn with oil pastels and pencils. The colours of the work are mentally agreed upon, and then I start my mixing of the base colours, including the heavy black/blue that helps forms the shapes and structure. The base is a very lien layer of oil paint, mainly so I can see the general form and structure of the piece.”
“From here, it is all about building up the layers. I mix my paints to arrange the painting into a composition that I find pleasing. I can often apply paint to the canvas directly from the tube, and mix on the canvas. There is a level of experimenting and playing that I enjoy with my works. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. I probably have more bad artworks than good - but that's the nature of how I work.”
What inspires you?
“My inspiration comes from my experiences in life. It is often a memory of a point in time where the memory is so strong that I need to visually diarize it in some way. I use nature, music, modern life and human emotional as core themes throughout my work.”
“When I read this back, it seems a strange mix, yet it seems to work for me.”
What do you hope people feel when they see your work?
“Viewers need to feel connected when they see my work. My hope is that the artwork speaks to them or reignites a memory or emotion deep inside. I want my art to speak to the emotive state of the viewer and allow them to drown in the colours, shapes and textures, leaving them connected to not only the artwork but more deeply to themselves.”
“When a viewer becomes deeply connected, the artwork becomes their story and not mine anymore. My story can be disregarded, so long as the connection with the viewers hits their emotive state.”
“My wish is that the viewers see exactly what they wish to see in my work. I don't like to lead them with what the painting means to me, because ultimately, when my work sits on a collectors wall, I hope it means something to them. That's when art becomes a very personal experience.”
Living in Another World runs from 19-28 April at Tyger Gallery in Yass. The online catalogue for the show will go out to subscribers in the week before opening. Sign up here to make sure you don’t miss out.
