Sydney-based artist Paul Davies presents Constructed Realities, a new body of work exploring the intersections of architecture, landscape, and memory.
For over two decades, Davies has examined the built and natural environments through a process-driven practice combining photography, stencilling, and intuitive mark-making. In this exhibition, he forges connections between the modernist architecture of California—particularly Palm Springs—and the subtropical vernacular of the Queenslander.
Central to the exhibition is a dialogue between these two architectural typologies: the utopian, glass-filled aspirations of mid-century modernism and the adaptable, elevated timber Queenslander. Both embrace a harmony with the environment, yet in Davies’ paintings they are reimagined as introspective structures—suspended, opaque, and resistant to disclosure. This ambiguity creates a subtle tension between what is remembered and what is erased.
Through his labour-intensive painting process, Davies overlays soft pastel tones with flashes of saturated colour. The interplay between delicate hues and deep blues or greens evokes layering and rhythm, while energising each composition with a push and pull between calmness and intensity.
Paul Davies graduated with a Masters from UNSW College of Art and Design (2014). He lived in Los Angeles from 2014–2019, where his work gained international recognition, and has since returned to Australia. His practice has been included in major institutional exhibitions such as Making Place: 100 Views of Brisbane (Museum of Brisbane, 2023) and Golden Days (Bathurst Regional Gallery, 2020). His works are held in collections including the J. Paul Getty Museum, Palm Springs Art Museum, HOTA Gold Coast, and Museum of Brisbane.
Most recently, his paintings have featured in Lost in Palm Springs, a touring exhibition curated by Dr Greer Honeywill for HOTA, which continues nationally until 2026.
Image: Paul Davies, Pandanus Queenslander, 2025, acrylic on linen, 152.0 x 122.0 cm
