Disappearing Act examines feelings of anxiety and concern toward landscapes under threat. In these paintings, curtains of patterned textiles are drawn back by disembodied hands, creating portals to seemingly idyllic environments beyond. Against the depth of these vistas the fabrics flatten into abstract designs that hinder and distract the eye, drawing attention to the way paintings mediate our experience of the landscape. This tension between the textiles and what they conceal transforms the landscape into an ambiguous, uncanny space that oscillates between anxiety and calm. — Monica Rohan, 2023
Disappearing Act is Monica Rohan’s sixth solo exhibition with the gallery and her most ambitious to date.
Known for her intimate and intricate style that displays a sensitivity to her surroundings, these works theatrically celebrate the Australian landscape and explore the anxiety of climate uncertainty.
Meticulously painted vistas are slowly revealed behind swathes of patterned, vintage fabric. Hands slip between these makeshift curtains; seemingly pulling us towards the environment and gesturing that the show is about to start. The textiles themselves contain natural motifs like flowers or overwhelming, expansive patterns. Their rendering fluctuates uncomfortably between dead-flat and billowing volume.
In her own gentle, surreal way, Monica is spotlighting slithers of the natural landscape, at threat of becoming remnants themselves.
Image: Monica Rohan The Track, 2022, oil on canvas, 120.0 x 183.0 cm
