Look and speak, 1986-87
oil, wax and timber 30 x 42 x 8 cm Private Collection |
1986-1987 Melbourne The transition between painting and sculpture has been a constant feature of Terry Batt’s oeuvre. While studying for his initial undergraduate degree at Monash University, he majored in sculpture for a short time with John Davis as his teacher. However, as he progressed he changed to painting. In part this was due to the labour-intensive nature of three-dimensional constructions and the amount of time taken to produce each piece. Later, the process was reversed, so that sculpture became an extension of his painting practice and painting became more measured and consuming of his time. Look and speak, 1986-87, is one of the first sculptural pieces that Batt produced in a converted factory-cum-studio situated in the Melbourne bayside suburb of Chelsea. The work started out as a painting, but was cut up and the individual elements were re-assembled and arranged to form a shadow box sculpture. Part process driven, part autobiographical and part humorous aside, the work was driven by the desire to make art out of materials that were easily accessible and sometimes literally lying around. The materiality of the object, a central feature of the work, is reinforced by Batt’s use of a wax medium in these paintings and pattern-making that echoes common floor coverings such as 1950s linoleum. |
Untitled, 1986
oil on canvas 200 x 450 cm [Terry Batt seated] |
Scenes from the "Floating Laundry", 1986
oil & wax on canvas 183 x 246 cm |
Memphis, 1986-87
oil on canvas
150 x 254 cm
oil on canvas
150 x 254 cm