
William Ferguson’s Landscape of the Icemen 1, similarly to other works in the artist’s current exhibition, manifests within a single image a lifetime of learning. Aesthetic influences from diverse cultures meld together into one compositional whole. Ferguson’s complex process of pigment application and creation of highly individual designs and patterns are akin to a deeply spiritual, meditative exercise.
The bold geometric formation of dark blues, earthy browns, and greys in the foreground of the composition floats on the surface of a pastel-coloured mesh. The complexity of the background palette reveals itself only upon close examination. Pinks, greys, and lavenders, with accents of blues, greens, and oranges, are judiciously placed next to each other to create a shimmering and pulsating surface where the delicate pigments, individually mixed and prepared by the artist, gently undulate across the picture plane.
The exhibition is current until Saturday 5 July 2014.
View complete exhibition online at http://www.quadrantgallery.com.au/william-ferguson.html