I'm an Australian artist and I predominatly paint or draw but also use photoshop etc to play with photos or to see what may potentionally become a painting and sound out my ideas. As I slowly add more and more images I hope you will give me plenty of feedback.BIO We live in a time where technology has become so advanced that you no longer even need a camera to produce amazing images. For the commercial world technology is the future, for it will embrace this new medium with open arms, however I am constantly amazed at the number of artists that still use traditional mediums and methods simply because they want to.
I am one of those people, who has a compelling desire that borders on an insane obsession to paint and draw. My pictures, although appearing realistic and simple at first glance become more complex the more you delve into the image and also create a story or better still raise questions.
I like to draw the viewer in, trap them with curiosity until they think what the hell is going on here. Sometimes my work is politically motivated, or pure fantasy Sometimes I know exactly what Im going to paint, or I just start and let the trained eye slowly pick that stroke of paint or colour that is forming an interesting direction or composition. I just play on those bits until the story seems to just come out of the brush. The description I feel most comfortable with is
surrealist, as I paint in a realistic manner but the situation may be totally unrealistic. I like the fact that I can create a world that does not exist but comes from imagination. I believe imagination is the key to society because it enables us to see the future and create it or divert it.
My traditional academic and self taught skills, enables me to paint in a manner that is universally understood and the skill and dedication is clearly visible to the viewer, something that is not seen enough these days. My paintings do not need a long, superlative filled pretencious description. I feel so many contemporary paintings are no more than decorative patterns designed to match the curtains. Galleries are filled with this meaningless pumped out decor with very little pride and skill attached, this is simply flooding the art world, purchased solely because the gallery owners say it is good art.
My aim is to bring art back to the people. The people who purchase it not because they know good art or bad art but because they know what they like and can see the human endeavour and desire that went into creating it. This is one of the principal objectives of the Zooid Art Movement of which I am a founding member.
Painting has been and still is a successful way of recording history, but I feel it is also an integral part of human endeavour, the need to achieve excellence in creation.
Graeme W. Balchin
Comments (14)
Belladzines
very true, and no rain falls, or i should say that what rain does fall, it doesnt fall in our catchment areas.... beautiful image and portrayal...
Elminster_ZK
Very nice painting, Graeme. I love the paper boat, it adds to the strangness of the scene, but also makes it calmer. The rocks really evoke "drought", excellent shadows and light. Wonderful work again, Graeme.
Arantes
A imagem possui como objetivo o contraste entre elementos. o barco de papel um elemento lico e primitivo, que contrasta com a complexa engenharia da metrole. A parte superior que representa a cidade e seu caos contrasta tamb com a paz representada na parte inferior, talvez com o intuito de evidenciar a diversidade de viss de mundo em uma grande metrole.
marcelopz
A ilustrao de graemeb nos mostra uma imagem produzida atrav do paradigma prfotogrico, retratando uma cena do cotidiano de uma grande cidade. O que mais chama ateno nessa imagem a contradio proposta pelo artista entre a cena cosmopolita do viaduto e dos prios e a cena bucica do barquinho na ua. nessa contradio que o artista atenta pro crescimento urbano sem precedentes.
rafaferro
A imagem ividcia o constraste entre a cidade, com seus prios, e o barco de papel em agua calma. Os aranhcs possuiem um tom mais realtico na imagem, nos levando a algo mais pesado, enquanto, o barco de papel mostra leveza. Nessa imagem vemos dois "sentidos" opostos.
graemeb
Thanks for all your comments, if anyone can help me with these last three it would be good, love to know what they have said. I only speak Astralan which is kinda like Englash but differant.
FREAKYALV
THATS FREAKIN SWEET!! LAST THREE WHAT??
JnM92
I love it so much, the little boat is so sweet!!!
SevenOfEleven
Lots of thirsty 'roos and people. Good luck on the drought. We had one a few years ago in NYC and they were talking about getting water from the lower Hudson. Lets just say, that the rats are not too keen on swimming in the Hudson river. One woman swam around Manhattan island and she needed lots of shots afterwards. Luckily it did not come to that.
glenravo
El Magnifique
kenmo
Impressive work...what vision...!!! V
bladrickscodpiece
Arantes says "The image possesses an objective contrast between elements. The paper boat is a playful and primitive element against the complex engineering of the metropolis. The superior part that is represented by the city and its chaos also contrasts with the peace represented in the inferior part, with possible evidence of the diversity of views of world in a great metropolis." marcelopz says "The illustration of graemeb is an image produced through the daily pay-photographic paradigm, portraying a scene of a day within a great city. What draws attention it this image is the contradiction proposal for the artist who enters the cosmopolitan scene of the viaduct and the building and the scene of the cockle-boat in the water. It is in this contradiction that the artist's perspective is pro urban growth without precedents."
xxancroft
Now THAT made me laugh!!
graemeb
Thanks again the spanish comments are particularly welcome.