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INEZ DE VEGA
Artist's statement
After several years of creative experimentation in video and film-making, the theatre and, in particular, as a writer, I began painting four years ago. Self-taught, I paint in oils and have found my artistic practice to be a vehicle for understanding myself a little better. Thus in the first few years, my work focused on the superficial aspects of self, namely the external self and images of beauty. "The Madonna" comes from this period. She is depicted as a Persian Jewish woman, a reflection of my own cultural background. The gold leaf that surrounds the figure, to her left and right, is also reminiscent of the rich tradition of Persian decorative arts.
Recently, as I experience the paradox of becoming more experienced as a visual artist and yet more aware of the impossible struggle that the artist commits to in her lifetime, my work has become less safe, reflecting this ambiguity. As human beings we seem destined to have to reconcile the uncomfortable and confusing relationship between the external self, which attempts to present as a figure of beauty, and our inner-world where doubt, suffering and self-loathing lurk as legitimate citizens of the psyche.
EXHIBITIONS:
AWARDS:
The
Contemporary Art Society of Victoria (Inc.) is a non-profit
organisation, run on a voluntary basis by artists, for artists, and
the Society has a long history of supporting and fostering artists -
particularly emerging artists and those from regional
Australia.
