Claire Graham
Host, 2018
collage, digital print
62 x 44cm (includes frame)
$125
‘Host’ is a digital print of an original collage artwork which has been constructed from old magazines and origami paper. ‘Host’ comes from a series of collage pieces that has a set format; a coloured rectangle background, a patterned rectangle placed on top of that, a collection of images cut out from 1950s to 1970s women’s magazines to form a pattern and cut out circles of varying colours and sizes to resolve the works. Within these limitations images and colours are chosen intuitively and randomly. Subconscious play is at the centre of this series but there is an intention to allow a type of narrative form.
‘Host’ has a 1950s male fashion model at the centre of the work who has two adoring women looking up at him. He looks out from the image in a disconnected manner whilst around him organised chaos ensues. He rises from a bowl of casserole, has a halo of flowers and fish tails, is surrounded by a ring of space orbs and the eyes of various women look on from the periphery. Whilst random connections and subconscious play are at the core of the piece, a narrative of the nature of power imbalances in human relationships has evolved. This is interlaced with the grossness of matter and a touch of cosmic connection, suggesting the interplay humanity has with universal forces and, yet, are most often obsessed with the mundane matters of learnt cultural behaviours.