A decade worth of mind-breaking art will be on display this summer in Geelong Gallery’s exhibition – Tricking the Eye.
Gallery curator Lisa Sullivan put the “Geelong-only” exhibition together by searching the catalogues of contemporary Australian art for works of deception.
“My interest is chiefly in the illusionistic aspects,” she said ahead of the exhibition, which starts 26 November.
“The idea of something not being quite what we expect it to be.”
The exhibition showcases 11 Australian artists whose paintings, sculptures, photographs and moving images play with perspective and warp reality.
Tricking the eye – trompe l’oeil – draws on centuries of tradition of brain-bending illusions.
Ms Sullivan had noticed various modern artists who incorporate that rich history into their works.
“Aspects of this genre have also transitioned (or been adopted) into ‘everyday’ scenarios such as restaurant and courtyard murals, chalk art and even advertising.”
The exhibition features artists including Daniel Crooks, Tully Moore, Colleen Ahern, Gregory Hodge, Stephen Bowers, Chris Bond, John Neeson, Ricky Swallow, Jess Johnson, Anne Zahalka and Georgina Cue.
Ms Sullivan drew inspiration for the collection from 2006 exhibition by Melbourne-based artist Jan Murray, whose work will also be on show in the exhibition.
“This is an idea that has been sitting with me for a while but this is the first time I’ve had an opportunity to do it.”
