SCHUBERT   

CONTEMPORARY

 Rod Bunter

“Drive Thru”
Official Opening Friday 20 August 2004 6:00 – 8:00pm

We live in a culture perpetually distracted by florid signs and images designed to persuade, entertain, inform and mostly sell.  “DRIVE THRU” exemplifies the ‘dream products’ of a world happily enured, insulated and estranged from reality where life is experienced vicariously through the ‘screen’ in front of us.

Cool and Brash

Nonchalantly embracing his own ‘Bad Boy’ label, Rod Bunter is determined to reveal “things so well known that they are not well seen”.  Appropriating the slick vitality of media imagery, he has developed a distinctive yet relevant language of vision.  A mixture of coolness and brashness, Bunter is the ironic spectator/reporter in the arena of desire and illusion.

More Than 60’s Pop

Like the ‘Pop’ artists of the sixties, Bunter magnifies the stereotypes of popular culture and imitates the homogenised character of mass-produced commercial graphics.  Bunter’s work however, has a further dimension.  His work is not silk-screened  or computer generated; it is meticulously painted in the traditional method with oils on canvas which creates subtle nuances.  The great number of hours spent on each piece is often incorporated into its title.

A Penchant For Paradox

The images of sultry female celebrities, shiny new power tools and frozen ‘sporting moments’ are all signified by incongruous logos and trademarks, or backgrounds which resemble ritzy purchase packaging.  These paradoxical juxtapositions intrigue, and because of them, Bunter succeeds in arresting the viewers natural response to quickly skim the familiar and move on.

“DRIVE THRU” is a dynamic, provocative and sardonically well-crafted presentation.  The young Brisbane artist has already achieved considerable national exposure, due in part, to the controversy surrounding his work in the 2002 Primavera Exhibition at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art.        Jacqueline Houghton

Consultants and Dealers in Fine Art

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