Stewart Angus MacFarlane (born November 1953,
Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, South Australia), is an Australian figurative painter. His style is a pared-down
realism
Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to:
In the arts
*Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts
Arts movements related to realism include:
*Classical Realism
*Literary realism, a move ...
(with expressionistic touches) combined with a surreality of lighting and perspective. He often, though not always, places a female or male nude in a situation of erotic
enigma
Enigma may refer to:
*Riddle, someone or something that is mysterious or puzzling
Biology
*ENIGMA, a class of gene in the LIM domain
Computing and technology
* Enigma (company), a New York-based data-technology startup
* Enigma machine, a family ...
. He paints the Australian scene representative of
Western society
Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''.
image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
as a whole.
Career
When aged 16 he enrolled at the South Australian School of Art, where he was influenced by the Adelaide painters, David Dridan and David Dallwitz. He gained a Diploma of
Fine Arts
In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...
(Painting) in 1974. The next year he travelled to America where he had group and solo exhibitions, as well as pursuing his other love, music. In 1977 he graduated with a Bachelor in Fine Arts (Painting) from the
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design.
History
This school was started by ...
, New York City.
He was a studio assistant of
Janet Fish
Janet Fish (born May 18, 1938) is a contemporary American Realism (arts), realist artist. Through oil painting, lithography, and screenprinting, she explores the interaction of light with everyday objects in the still life genre. Many of her pai ...
. Since returning to Australia in 1983, MacFarlane has earned his living as a professional painter, exhibiting several times a year, either in Australia or internationally.
MacFarlane is also a musician. His band, "Stew Lane and The Untouchables", performed and recorded in New York City from 1979 to 1981. The Album, ''Harder Than Wax'' was released by AZ International, France, in 1980. The band's independent release, "U.N.Rap Song" (Private Ear Records, 1980) was acknowledged by
Freddy Fresh
Frederick Schmid, better known by his stage name Freddy Fresh, is an American DJ, musician, and electronic music producer. Fresh has recorded for over 100 independent record labels, including major labels Sony UK, Virgin, BMG UK, and Harthous ...
as one of the earliest rap records and one of the first examples of a group, outside the
hip-hop genre, to incorporate
rap
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
into their music.
[Freddy Fresh, The Rap Records, (First Edition) p.259.]
References
Bibliography
Monographs
* Helmridge-Marsillian, Veronique, ''Stewart MacFarlane. Riddles of Life'', Craftsman House, Sydney, 1996
* Jose, Nicholas & Morrell, Timothy, "Stewart MacFarlane, Paintings", Wei-Ling Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, 2012
Books
* Aland, Jenny, ''Australian Artlook'', Heinemann, Melbourne, 1997
* Drury, Nevill, ''Images 2, Contemporary Australian Painting'', Craftsman House, Sydney, 1994
* Drury, Nevill, ''Images 3, Contemporary Australian Painting'', Craftsman House, Sydney, 1998
* McCulloch, Alan, (rev. by Susan McCulloch), ''The Encyclopedia of Australian Art'', Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 1994
* McCulloch, Alan, McCulloch, Susan, and McCulloch, Emily, ''The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art'', Miegunyah Press, Melbourne, 2006
* Pickett, Charles, ''Cars and Culture. Our Driving Passions'', HarperCollins and Powerhouse Publishing, Sydney, 1999
* Williams, Donald, and Simpson, Colin, ''Art Now. Contemporary Art Post-1970'', McGraw-Hill, Sydney, 1994
Articles
* Adam, Rosemary, "Stewart MacFarlane: 'Roswell'", ''Art Monthly'', September 1990
* Adam, Rosemary, "Stewart MacFarlane",'' Tension'', March 1992
* Heathcote, Christopher, "Summer Famine", ''Art Monthly'', March 1989
* Helmridge-Marsillian, Veronique, "Work and Sex. Three Paintings by Stewart MacFarlane", ''Art Monthly'', July 1994
* Morrell, Timothy, "The Function", ''Artlines'', Queensland Art Gallery Society, August–September 1997
Catalogues
* Katz, Vincent, ''Compulsion: Stewart MacFarlane'', Brisbane City Gallery, 2001
* Leong, Roger, ''The Painted Self. Rick Amor, Peter Churcher, Kevin Lincoln, Stewart MacFarlane and Lewis Miller'', Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, 2006
* MacFarlane, Stewart, ''Door of Memories'', Roswell Museum and Art Center, New Mexico, USA, 1987
* MacFarlane, Stewart, ''Screenplay'', Galerie Carlos Hulsch Berlin, Germany, 2000
* MacFarlane, Stewart, and Helmridge-Marsillian, Veronique, ''Stewart MacFarlane. Small Observations. A Survey of Small Oil Paintings 1967–2005'', Carnegie Gallery, Hobart, 2006
* Rufe, Laurie, and Fleming, Stephen, ''Beyond a Gift of Time. Current Work by Former Fellows of the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program'', Roswell Museum and Art Center, New Mexico, USA, 2008
* Smith, Jason, ''So You Wanna Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star'', NGV Shell Collection, 2005
* Wei-Ling, Lim, ''Private Life. Stewart MacFarlane'', Wei-Ling Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2006
Video
* Nedelkopolous, Nicholas. ''Private View'' (2004, 49 mins, Mini Digital Video) Documentary on artist Stewart MacFarlane.
External links
stewartmacfarlane.com official site
Private View by Nicholas Nedelkopoulos
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macfarlane, Stewart
Australian painters
Realist artists
Australian musicians
Living people
1953 births
Archibald Prize finalists
Visual artists in late 20th-century Australia