Mark Callaghan graduated with a BFA from the National Art School and has shown work in various group shows around Sydney and London as well as a solo show in the Southern Highlands of NSW. He lives in Sydney Australia, working in a variety of mediums mainly focusing on painting, and printmaking.
Artist Statement
My works often feature natural processes contrasted against man-made lines and forms. Forms that reflect humanity’s will, and struggle against, not only their own nature, but also the nature surrounding them.
Decaying surfaces and ruins elicit reflections on the fleeting nature of time. My aim is to comprehend and co-operate with natural processes and prompt the viewer to consider nature as well as time and their place within it. Stopping the oxidation process within my work is a feature that serves as a reminder that the present is paramount.
Oxidized metals first surfaced in my work in 2003 and have become an integral part of my practice. With a long interest in decay and corrosion in the man-made and natural environment, I seek to produce surfaces in my work that elicit a feeling that usually only nature or time would provide.
The decay of nature as well as ruins from the man-made environment can serve to remind us of the ephemeral nature of our own lives. Thus helping us reframe and re-examine our principles and the natural order of things.
I find the process of creating these works deeply calming, and feel that making them and viewing them is almost like a meditation that takes me out of my head, into a more natural way of being.
