Lot 110: LIN ONUS 1948-1996

UNTITLED (MID-DAY BARMAH FOREST) C.1994

MEASUREMENTS

182.5 by 182.5 cm

Signed lower right
Synthetic polymer paint on linen

PROVENANCE
Corporate collection, Melbourne Cf. Neale, M (ed.), Urban Dingo - the Art and Life of Lin Onus 1948-1996, Craftsman House, Sydney, 2000, p. 105 and pp.108-109 The reflection of light off the surface of water, and the refractive and transparent qualities of water held a fascination for Onus throughout his career. As early as 1985 paintings such as 'Fences, fences, fences, Jimmy's billabong' of 1988 in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia, and the Australian Heritage Commission's prize winning 'Barmah Forest', 1994, (Neale, 2000, p.65, plate 11, pp.74-75, plate 22 and p.76, plate 23 respectively), Onus experimented with the effects of light on and through the surface of water. He creates ambiguous spaces that tease the viewer's eye with a combination of reflected light, the effect of shadows cast onto the watery surface by objects outside the picture plane, fish swimming underwater and occasionally breaking its surface to create ripples, and the very bottom of the lake. Barmah Forest itself is a recurring theme or setting in Onus' oeuvre as he had ancestral connections to the place The fish in the painting are decorated with a fine cross-hatched pattern belonging to the Djinang group in central Arnhem Land. In 1988, Onus made his first visit to the master artist Jack Wunuwun (1930-90) at Gamerdi in Arnhem Land. The visits to Arnhem Land, which Onus called 'pilgrimages' were to become regular. The relationship between the two had a transformative effect on Onus' artistic career. Wunuwun adopted Onus and his family into his own family, and granted permission for Onus to use Wunuwun's clan patterns in his work. This allowed Onus to express his Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal background in his art by combining elements of both visual cultures