WHEN : 15th June, 6:00 – 9:00pm
WHERE : White Canvas Gallery
Mark “Chopper” Read’s friendship with the 2000 Archibald Prize winner Adam Cullen gave Read the the initial impetus to start painting a decade ago. Cullen had taken Read to a Melbourne art gallery to view his work and mentioned that Elton John had recently purchased two of his works for $50,000. Read replied: “How long has this shit been going on?” As a result Read took up the brush.
In Read’s first exhibition of 45 works in Fitzroy, all works sold out on the first night. A follow-up Sydney exhibition with 28 works also sold out on the opening night. A further exhibition in Perth had the same result with all 30 works selling as well.
Read does not claim to be an outstanding artist, understanding that his paintings sell because of his notorious profile. Adam Cullen describes his work as “post-modernist, neo-surrealist rubbish, but it looks good hanging on the wall”.
This will be Read’s sixth Australian exhibition and only his second in Queensland. He is joined by Redcliffe’s rising portrait artist Kelvin Hawley. Hawley specialises in realism, particularly in portraiture and landscapes and is known for his use of bright colours. Together their combined works form a unique exhibition entitled “Chopper”
