The Joke Is On You
Kieran Bryant, Theresa Chromati (USA), Beth Dillon, Fresh and Fruity (NZ), Emily Galicek, Matthew Harris, Ben Thomas Jones, Shahmen Suku, Natalie Synnott , Alana WesleyCurated by Emily Galicek
4 April- 21 April, 2018
Opening night Tuesday 3 April 2018- 5-8 PM
Opening Night Performances
6:30PM: Radha La Bia (Shahmen Suku)
7:15PM: Beth Dillon
The Joke is On You provokes differing uses of humour as artistic strategy, with a particular focus on its potential for critique of wider social and intersectional issues. The works in this exhibition pay homage to and expand upon moments of humour within art history: at times they present a humorous and queer re-imagining of histories.
As a collection of works in dialogue with one another, there is a sense of oscillation between highbrow and lowbrow humour. The works don’t “laugh at,” but instead “laugh with.” They are nuanced: appearing serious until you look hard enough and realise they aren’t, or works that tread a fine line between laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy.
The mediums utilised among the artists are reflective of current contemporary practice: the use of phone and computer-generated photographs and videos, text-based works, performance and expanded painting.
Special thanks to Georgia Hobbs
The Joke Is On You Room Sheet (opens in a new window)
Image: Matthew Harris, Dom Top, 2017, synthetic polymer paint on linen.
Images courtesy of the artists and Kudos Gallery. Photos: Nicholas Aloisio-Shearer
