Join Carnivals of Clouds at Janet Rady Gallery

Janet Rady Fine Art is pleased to present Carnivals of Clouds, a group exhibition of international artists, featuring Koshiro Akiyama, Iain Andrews, Kerry Louise Bennett, Beatrice Hassell-McCosh, Yann Leto, Alice Macdonald, Lindsey Jean Mclean, Orla Murray, Blessing Ngobeni and Jade van der Mark. On view from January 12 – February 22.

As the name of the exhibition suggests, Carnival of Clouds is inspired in part by Emily Dickinson’s poem, “Heaven” has different signs – to me”, which comments on our boundless capacity for awe and wonder found in in human relationships, the natural world, and quotidian happenings in our surrounding environment. At once playful, imaginative and evocative, the works reflect the necessity of expression and the lived experience that resonates through us all, while also embodying a psychological tone.

Yann Leto, Performance in The Garden. Courtesy of Janet Rady Gallery.

Beatrice Hassell-McCosh, Wild Garlic, Courtesy of Janet Rady Gallery.

Blessing Ngobeni, You Drunk All The Blood, Courtesy of Janet Rady Gallery.

Jade van der Mark, Together But Separated, Courtesy of Janet Rady Gallery.

Alice Macdonald, River Crossing, Courtesy of Janet Rady Gallery.

Bringing together ten artists from across the globe, the exhibition encompasses 35 contemporary works produced over the last few years, that in some cases have been influenced by the global pandemic in their sometimes expressive and emotional ruminations on isolation, to works that take on the tradition of landscape or still life, to comment more widely on themes of surrealism and fantasy. The included pieces vary in size, form, texture and technique. The processes used by the artists are as diverse as the makers themselves and the style of their works. Though the artists deviate in their subject matter, style, and scale, the thread which draws them together is their psychological nature and consideration of form, subject matter, scale, and colour palette, that create works that are both playful yet also expressive of deeper inner truths that can be surreal, fantastical or figurative.

Each artist treats the themes of surrealism and fantasy differently; in some cases through an observation of the inner psychology of the human form, in other cases, through the examination of natural forms, still lives and landscapes. The works in Carnivals of Clouds are evocative, imaginative, and playful, and reflect the necessity of expression in the lived experience that resonates with us all.