Mis en Scene by Patrick Hromas

5th – 17th January, 2015

Opening Night:
Thursday 8th of January 6.30pm to 8.30pm

Patrick Hromas presents a solo exhibition of painted work entitled Mis en Scene, The streets of Nǐmes, the streets of Springwood. Utilising as a starting point, a 15th Century method of painting adapted to modern processes he paints from a digital mock-up, starting with a mid toned ‘grisaille’ of cobalt or ultramarine blue then builds glazes of primary colours, to achieve varied gradations of tone or colour as used by influential artists such as Georgeo de Chirico or Francis Picabia.

Hromas has been developing not only the craft of his postmodern inspired Surrealist works since painting abstract watercolours in his formative years, but the conceptual underpinning of this series (one of four ongoing bodies of works) which thematically binds three disparate ideas. That is: background views of Nǐmes (in the South of France), with streetscapes of his residential town of Springwood in the Blue Mountains, melded with various internet scavenged nudes or popular culture figures into a dream-like image. An obsessive concern for composition and framing, borrowed from Henri Matisse acts as both a charm and catalyst for the viewer’s eye.