Kirra Jamison

09 August – 27 August 2016
Jan Murphy Gallery, Brisbane QLD

One of the most well known aspects of Kirra Jamison’s work has long been her fearless use of colour. Whether in pastel palettes or bold hues, Jamison arranges colours in seemingly infinite ways on the canvas, with a rhythmic sensibility that keeps the eye bouncing from one form to the next.

Kirra Jamison, Aster 1, 2016 acrylic on polyester, 213.0 x 183.0 cm

Yet alongside this feature, Jamison’s paintings and works on paper have always demonstrated her deep respect for other essential elements of picture making – namely shape and line. This body of work makes a departure from the dazzling colour and intricate patterning of previous works, as she abandons the rainbow hues to focus on boldly defined organic and lineal forms painted in pared-back, earthy tones.

Kirra Jamison, Mono 1, 2016, gouache on paper, 56.0 x 76.0 cm

Jamison’s art is guided more by her intuitive sensibilities than any specific aesthetic theory. Her work has always reflected her surroundings and environment, which at the moment is heavily informed by her daily yoga practice and the fully-fledged yoga studio she established near her home a year ago. Through controlling the body yoga encourages stillness of mind, and there is a synchronicity between this calm yogic headspace and the restraint apparent in this current body of work.

Kirra Jamison, Bow 2, 2016, gouache on paper, 76.0 x 56.0 cm

There is nothing frenzied or loose about these images, rather they exhibit total control in both palette choices and deliberate mark-making. This is beautifully expressed in her paintings in gouache on paper, where dark lines of ultra matt gouache are applied with calligraphic surety onto a pale surface. The results are refreshing in their graphic crispness.

Like drawing with your finger on a foggy pane of glass, Jamison seems to revel in the simplicity and directness of touch expressed in this current body of work. It’s a confident push into new territory for a much sought after artist.

Marguerite Brown
MAArtCur

Kirra Jamison, Bow 1, 2016, gouache on paper, 76.0 x 56.0 cm

Kirra Jamison, Mono 2, 2016 gouache on paper, 76.0 x 56.0 cm

Kirra Jamison, Aster 5, 2016, acrylic on polyester 185.0 x 153.0 cm

All images ©Kirra Jamison 2016
Text ©Marguerite Brown 2016