Artist profile
Josh
Fartch
In his studio practice, Josh draws on the study of materials and processes, exploring the indeterminate nature of in-between states: between representation and abstraction, material and immaterial, the real and the virtual, tomorrow and yesterday.
He works from River Studios in Footscray and lives in Coburg, Melbourne. He holds a Masters in Fine Art from Monash University.
Career Highlights
- A near sell out exhibition at the recent Affordable Art Fair in Melbourne.
- Working as a visual artist on a theatre production
- Winning the John Shaw Neilson and Limestone Coast Art Prizes
What medium do you work with, and why have you chosen them?
I work with acrylics mainly. I like the instant, intuitive nature of painting with acrylics. You have to work quickly and be confident in your brushstrokes. I also only paint from life and find this complements working that way.
How does your artwork get from initial concept to exhibition stage?
I use drawing and painting to explore different ideas. Often this could start off as an object or lighting effect that I’ll commit to painting a few times in a series to see where I can take it. I consider different angles and rearrange the objects within the pictorial space to see what I can find. Sometimes the relationship between different objects or colours might be more pronounced or encourage slight variations in style. I then select the best versions to exhibit from this body of work. I find that the meta ideas and themes reveal themselves over the course of 3-6 months. I’m influenced by seasonal trends as well, for example we have citrus trees and limes appear in my work from time to time. I’m also married and have four and six year old children. Toy dinosaurs sometimes find their way into my work. The flowers in recent more popular paintings came from my wife’s impeccable style.
Can you tell us a little more about your creative working environment/studio?
I have a painting studio at River Studios in West Melbourne. I also paint small works from home, often at 4am in the early hours of the morning quiet. I focus on keeping a clean work space and am pretty fussy now.
