Sherratt revels in local aesthetic affluence<\/p>\n
By Pavan Kapoor<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Subconscious forces, fantasies, archetypal myths
\nand surrealist symbols, all eventually crystallized by a
\ncompelling rainbow spectrum into a complex arrangement of forms
\nand rhythms, is perhaps the best attempt at describing the work
\nof surrealist artist Bruce Sherratt.<\/p>\n
The English artist is displaying his 58 paintings at the Duta
\nFine Arts Foundation in Kemang, South Jakarta, until Oct. 14.<\/p>\n
With inexpugnable dreams, philosophical and psychological
\ninfluences which seem to have assimilated themselves in his
\npsyche, the brush of Sherratt knows no boundaries, adheres to no
\nlimitations while exploring surrealism to the uttermost extremity
\ncombined with a prolific understanding of the expressive
\npossibilities of the use of color.<\/p>\n
It was at a very young and impressionable age that Sherratt
\nwas exposed to and fascinated by surrealist masters such as
\nSalvador Dali and Max Ernst. Due to his extensive travels and
\nwide interests, his work is eclectic and internationally
\nversatile.<\/p>\n
His style is sculptured by broad, archetypal concepts founded
\non nature and landscape, mythology, psychology and the
\nmesmerizing eastern philosophies have long provided the
\nphilosophical under-pinning for his paintings. Currently he is
\nliving in Jakarta with his daughter and teaching at the Jakarta
\nInternational School.<\/p>\n
Sherratt focuses on the raw emotion and the need to express
\nhis intuitions and feelings as his primary sources of
\ninspiration.<\/p>\n
\"Like life itself, my paintings are enigmatic. The colors
\nspeak directly to the soul. The paintings are not statements but
\nvisual offerings,\" he said.<\/p>\n
One of his favorite paintings called The Awakening was
\ninspired by his first trips to Bali. Potently impelled by the
\natmosphere of mystery, energy and life that permeates the entire
\nisland, this work of art resonates the contradictions of the
\nexotic and bountiful intertwined with the vengeful and
\ndestructive.<\/p>\n
For all artists of varied mediums, be it oils, watercolors or
\neven pastels - color ceases to be just a medium of art but
\nformulates a language, a dialect of it's own. Color has an
\nobjective and spiritual power, which has had undeniable influence
\nthroughout the course of history.<\/p>\n
And for Sherratt who has researched into color, especially the
\ntheories of Goethe and Rudolf Steiner, color is the starting
\npoint; the primary element from which his pictures emerge. It
\nworks on the subconscious level more than that of symbology and
\nother images of which Sherratt makes abundant use of in paintings
\nsuch as Wishes and Desires, Bali Dawn, Metempsychosis and
\nVictim.<\/p>\n
Colors are often enhanced when juxtaposed with their
\nopposites.<\/p>\n
However, Sherratt has not allowed himself the exuberance of
\nthe entire spectrum of colors in all of his paintings, but often
\nuses a very limited range of colors, such as in Self portrait
\nwith Phantoms 1996, where there are layers of orange and red
\nonly. The Two Blue Monkeys is a visual treat, as well as a
\nchallenge in dominantly green and blue with subtle, warmer hues
\nseeping through producing a wet, tropical, swampy atmosphere.<\/p>\n
According to Sherratt, \"Sometimes a more restricted color
\nrange achieves a more distinct effect, as in theater and film it
\nis used to produce a particularly powerful and characteristic
\neffect.\"<\/p>\n
Woman in Bali is a common enough subject but when viewed
\nthrough the eyes of a surrealist attempting realism the result
\ninfuses new life into the subject. The painting speaks of the
\npsycho-spiritual desire of many western women to enrich and
\nenliven their lives inspired by the tropical lushness of Bali.
\nExposing their soul to exotic or sacred places the foreigner
\ndesires to merge her being completely within this tropical and
\nsensuous world. Meanwhile the use of the symbol of the tall,
\nbird-headed phantom on the extreme left, heightens her femininity
\nand vulnerability in a strange land.<\/p>\n
Not only has the exoticism of Bali interested the artist but
\nhe insists it is the local sense of their stylish elegance and
\nfine craftsmanship that has also inspired him a great deal.<\/p>\n
Sherratt is currently investigating painting and stained glass
\nwork in relation to architecture, especially public and religious
\nbuildings and large-scale projects such as murals.<\/p>\n
He feels contented that he has been successful in establishing
\na dynamic and satiating relationship between his work at the
\nschool as an art educator and as a professional artist.<\/p>\n
While teaching art to his students they become the frontline
\nof inspiration for him. He strongly believes that art education
\nand aesthetic awareness is indispensable to a child's complete
\neducation and that art will move hand in hand as we move into the
\nnext century.<\/p>\n
When one comes across Sherratt's black and white linear
\nwatercolor paintings, it seems paradoxical to his theory on
\ncolor. However Sherratt expands on his fascination as a young
\nadult with the strong black lines contained in stained glass
\nchurch windows in contrast to the brilliantly colored glass. An
\nirresistible desire to add human, animal and abstract shapes to
\nrealistic images and the strong influence of the Balinese Batuan
\nstyle.<\/p>",
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