A four-metre tiger stands serenely on a New York City corner surrounded by a handful of onlookers. This surreal image is the focal point of the major artwork ‘Crossroads’ in the upcoming exhibition by Joel Rea at Mitchell Fine Art in Brisbane.
‘Outsider’ opening on 6th October, is Joel Rea’s first exhibition in Brisbane in 5 years following a raft of sell out exhibitions in London and New York.
Described as a contemporary surrealist painter, Rea’s hyper real, allegorical works explore the dualities of the human condition. In this exhibition Rea looks at the notion of humanities assured omnipotence whilst acknowledging the fragility of our existence and the transitory nature of our time on this planet.
Nature is presented as an all-consuming energy that is at the same time sublime but with a cautionary element. Viewers are invited to discover meaning behind the layers of imagery that at first may appear disconnected and random but have been thoroughly thought out by the artist and strategically placed.
Based on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Joel Rea has exhibited throughout Australia and more recently in the UK and US. In 2014 Rea won the People’s Choice Award in the Black Swan Prize for Portraiture. In 2013 Rea was the Winner of the 2013 ANL Maritime Art Award (VIC), and has been a finalist in numerous prestigious Australian art prizes including the Moran National Portrait Prize (NSW), Salon Des Refuses (NSW), Black Swan Art Prize (WA), Fleurieu Landscape Prize (SA) and the Sulman Prize (NSW).
The exhibition ‘Outsider’ opens on Friday 6th September at 6pm, with Rea in attendance. An Artist Talk will be held in the gallery on Saturday 7th September from 2pm.
