John Adam examines his painting Hotham Street, Collingwood, painted in the late 1970s. His current exhibition includes several works from that period. In his new exhibition, veteran John Adam comes face to face with his younger self – and he likes what he sees. Catherine Watson reports.
By Catherine Watson
ONE painting was the work of half an hour; the other took years, as the dissatisfied artist put it down several times, and eventually away for a few years, before a photograph helped him find a way to finish it.
Respected Phillip Island artist and teacher John Adam gave a fascinating insight into the way art works at the opening of his new exhibition, Dreams from a Carport, at Saraghi Art Space in Cowes last Saturday. The exhibition includes several works from the late 1970s, recently rediscovered, as well as more recent works.
John Adam examines his painting Hotham Street, Collingwood, painted in the late 1970s. His current exhibition includes several works from that period.
Dreams from a Carport is at Saraghi Art Space, behind Café Lugano, 71 Thompson Ave, Cowes, until December 11.
Introducing one of the early paintings, Anzac Day 1979, which looks like a spaceship landing in a forest, Adam told the back story: the painting depicts the remains of a Volkswagen his 19-year-old son was driving when he lost control of the car and hit a tree. His son miraculously survived, but Adam was so shaken by the sight of the crumpled up car that he painted it the next day in a rush of emotion. The painting took half an hour.
Recently reunited with several of his works from that period, Adam was pleased to find that he liked them very much. He also envied the freedom of his younger self. “It’s their simplicity – I wish I could paint like that now!”
Almost 40 years later, he still recalled the textrure of the gouache – a particularly vibrant green – that he had used in one painting, Old Shearing Shed.
A multiple winner of Bass Coast’s acquisitive arts prize, as well as many other Adam is known for his ability to work in a variety of styles and media. Although he was trained as a tonal painter, he has no preference for any particular style.
In this exhibition some paintings are traditional and meticulous. Others verge on abstraction. Some have been painted quickly. Others have been worked on for months or even years. There are contrasts and surprises, truly something for everyone.
The “sold” stickers were going up quickly at the opening. The winner of this year’s Bass Coast acquisitive prize, Ursula Theinert, snapped up two of Adam’s abstracts for her collection. She spoke admiringly of his long and fertile career.
Now in his 82nd year, Adam continues to paint, he says, because he still enjoys it and is happy to follow wherever a work leads him. While landscape is his prime motivation, his imaginative interpretation of his feelings can lead to unpredictable and stimulating conclusions.
He quotes the late Desiderius Orban, an eminent Sydney artist and educator: “The artist, beginning a work, is the dictator of what will happen. At a certain point, however, an indescribable sensation intervenes. The painting takes command. This is the moment when, even in a descriptive painting, the pictorial element takes the upper hand.”
ONE painting was the work of half an hour; the other took years, as the dissatisfied artist put it down several times, and eventually away for a few years, before a photograph helped him find a way to finish it.
Respected Phillip Island artist and teacher John Adam gave a fascinating insight into the way art works at the opening of his new exhibition, Dreams from a Carport, at Saraghi Art Space in Cowes last Saturday. The exhibition includes several works from the late 1970s, recently rediscovered, as well as more recent works.
John Adam examines his painting Hotham Street, Collingwood, painted in the late 1970s. His current exhibition includes several works from that period.
Dreams from a Carport is at Saraghi Art Space, behind Café Lugano, 71 Thompson Ave, Cowes, until December 11.
Introducing one of the early paintings, Anzac Day 1979, which looks like a spaceship landing in a forest, Adam told the back story: the painting depicts the remains of a Volkswagen his 19-year-old son was driving when he lost control of the car and hit a tree. His son miraculously survived, but Adam was so shaken by the sight of the crumpled up car that he painted it the next day in a rush of emotion. The painting took half an hour.
Recently reunited with several of his works from that period, Adam was pleased to find that he liked them very much. He also envied the freedom of his younger self. “It’s their simplicity – I wish I could paint like that now!”
Almost 40 years later, he still recalled the textrure of the gouache – a particularly vibrant green – that he had used in one painting, Old Shearing Shed.
A multiple winner of Bass Coast’s acquisitive arts prize, as well as many other Adam is known for his ability to work in a variety of styles and media. Although he was trained as a tonal painter, he has no preference for any particular style.
In this exhibition some paintings are traditional and meticulous. Others verge on abstraction. Some have been painted quickly. Others have been worked on for months or even years. There are contrasts and surprises, truly something for everyone.
The “sold” stickers were going up quickly at the opening. The winner of this year’s Bass Coast acquisitive prize, Ursula Theinert, snapped up two of Adam’s abstracts for her collection. She spoke admiringly of his long and fertile career.
Now in his 82nd year, Adam continues to paint, he says, because he still enjoys it and is happy to follow wherever a work leads him. While landscape is his prime motivation, his imaginative interpretation of his feelings can lead to unpredictable and stimulating conclusions.
He quotes the late Desiderius Orban, an eminent Sydney artist and educator: “The artist, beginning a work, is the dictator of what will happen. At a certain point, however, an indescribable sensation intervenes. The painting takes command. This is the moment when, even in a descriptive painting, the pictorial element takes the upper hand.”
John Adam with Ursula Theinert and his painting Spring.