Passive Regressive by Jamie Priesz
Created during a recent residency in Portugal, Jamie Preisz’s latest solo show, Passive Regressive, explores an unconventional blend of still life and landscape works, drawing on themes of impermanence and consumption.
Words: Hande Renshaw I Photography: Benny Hamilton
Jamie Preisz putting the final touches on his work at HAKE House. Photo: Benny Hamilton
Red Sky at Night by Jamie Preisz. Photo: Benny Hamilton
‘I know it sounds cliché, but the light is very different [than in Portugal] to the harsh Australian sun. There are warm sunsets, cool blue grey afternoons and purple sunrises! This was a huge inspiration in the places I visited.’ Photo: Benny Hamilton
‘If you always paint what people consider “beautiful” – you tend to make boring work.’ Photo: Benny Hamilton
Island in the Sun by Jamie Preisz. Photo: Benny Hamilton
For artist Jamie Preisz, last year was filled with blissful and eventful moments. He competed an art residency in Messejanna, Portugal and prior to starting, travelled around Europe with his partner, where, ‘in front of some turquoise water and blue-grey cliffs, she became my fiancé in the south of France,’ says Jamie.
It was during his art residency that Jamie created his works for his current exhibition at HAKE House in Sydney, titled Passive Regressive.
‘I was excited to see what sort of direction my creativity would gravitate to on this trip and had tried not to visualise too much before I had experienced my time over there,’ he shares.
During his time away, Jamie travelled between tiny islands in the Mediterranean, noticing the struggle of the residents and landmark destinations, who hadn’t had access to the usual flow of European tourism over the last few years.
‘I was inspired by still life paintings of Caravaggio I saw in Italy, rejected by the church who commissioned them, because of the fruit being “to realistic” – depicting pears that had began to rot and flowers that wilted.’
When he arrived in the quaint village of Messejanna, Jamie was housed in a beautiful old house and studio to work in - an idyllic location for any creative.
‘I like to be an artist of my time and though I paint in a classical renaissance style, I use trash and single-use packaging in my work to create some tension between the old and the new, the classical and the kitsch.’ Photo: Benny Hamilton
“Having spent some formative years of my artistic career in Paris, I find travel and new experiences can ignite new ways of thinking.”
‘The decay in these paintings is depicted across the series, as the backgrounds transition from blue to red – within the collective of works viewers may notice the objects and surrounding fruit begins to decay.’ Photo: Benny Hamilton
Fear and Loathing Cat God Floating by Jamie Preisz. Photo: Benny Hamilton
‘At the end of the day, I wanted to make some work that people haven’t seen before, that can’t really be put in a box.’ Photo: Benny Hamilton
False Idols by Jamie Preisz. Photo: Benny Hamilton
Passive Regressive explores an unconventional blend of still life and landscape within each work, approaching themes of deterioration and consumption in a classical style with a contemporary twist.
‘I like to be an artist of my time and though I paint in a classical renaissance style, I use trash and single-use packaging in my work to create some tension between the old and the new, the classical and the kitsch,’ says Jamie.
Throughout his six month travels, Jamie collected various objects from Portugal, France, Ireland, Germany, Italy and Turkey, to depict in carefully curated still-life scenes resting upon the shallow water.
Every object found tells a story, with a personal connection attached to each.
‘It was these human moments that inspire personal meaning in these works, which I feel deserve to live on in a painting.’
Decay is depicted in the paintings across the series, as the backgrounds transition from blue to red. Within the collective of works viewers may notice the objects and surrounding fruit begins to decompose.
‘Our ideas can change just as our physical form can – I’m interested in the reactions and feelings of my viewers when considering these ideas; “Is change something to embrace? Does decay always mean death?” I wanted to make works that people haven’t seen before, that can’t really be put in a box. I feel proud and so lucky that an audience takes time to look at them and perhaps beyond them as well.’