Following his previous exhibition Foreign Language at Jan Manton Gallery in 2020, Aaron Butt’s latest exhibition Pneumatophores chronicles the moment Australian artist Ian Fairweather (1891-1974) landed on Rote Island, Indonesia, after his 16-day raft journey in 1952. Fairweather was held by the Indonesian authorities under suspicion of being a spy, but was permitted to walk the island under supervision. In response to this event, Butt has painted a series of works which give images to this imageless experience. Through these works, viewers have the opportunity to explore this beautiful yet isolating landscape as Fairweather once might have done.
Accompanying this series is a group of works depicting views from Butt’s local area, including Bribie Island, Sandstone Point and Mulgumpin (Moreton Island), as well as Northern New South Wales. These scenes as well as the surfaces they are painted on were collected during walks and short trips in the area, many due to travel restrictions. The use of found objects alludes to Fairweather’s use of humble materials as well as Butt’s investment in both the image and the object, therefore expanding the way in which the artwork can be engaged with.
In undertaking these explorations, Butt also acts as a witness to the beauty and diversity of Australia’s east coast, while intimately exploring themes of isolation which hold particular poignancy during this time. Current restrictions have afforded Butt the unique opportunity to look more intimately at his surrounding environment and appreciate the timelessness of these local landscapes.
The artist respectfully acknowledges the Djindubari, Gubbi Gubbi, Ningy Ningy, Ngugi and Bundjalung people as the Traditional Owners of the land on which the works in the exhibition were made and depict.
Image: Rote 7, 2020, Aaron Butt, oil on canvas, 76 x 101.5cm. Image courtesy of the artist and Jan Manton Gallery.
