William QS Nguyen
The King's School
PHANTASMAGORIA
Painting
Watercolour and pastel on paper
"What is important is to spread confusion, not eliminate it." Salvador Dali
In my body of work I pay homage to the Surrealists and explore the perplexing beauty between reality and the uncanny. My intent was to emphasise the interrelationship between identity and culture. Each vessel that holds flowers represents an epoch -traditional, modern and postmodern - and cultural variations of flower arrangement express a universal harmony of nature and humankind. In our culturally saturated world, overwhelmed by the accessibility of information, we have become desensitised to reality and are trapped within our inability to find a 'stable' identity.
My artmaking practice has been influenced by the study and interpretation of the following artists: Marcel Duchamp, Frida Kahlo, René Magritte, Salvador Dali.
Marker's Commentary
Phantasmagoria is a discerning body of work that examines the existence and connectedness of cultural identity. A dialogue is created for the audience to consider a balanced mix of reality and the shifting appearance of dreamlike and fantastical objects. Synergy is demonstrated between the richness of the intricate painterly techniques and the sense of movement in the changing phantasm in the floral visions. The intricate realism is accomplished in conjunction with contemporary painting treatment and resolution with references to classicism. The curatorial practice invites a further reading of the work presented as a multi-layered series of artworks. The twelve panels demonstrate restraint, cohesiveness, and confidence, inviting the detailed viewing of the connections between nature and the merged representations of the figurative elements with a nod to surrealism.