Burrow

Burrow by Gerry Davis immerses the viewer in a psychological landscape, equivocal in its droll approach to its subjects and its nebulous depiction of phantasy and uncertainty.
The isolated figure is a central recurring element in the works, being either shown in melancholic states or in exaggerated symbolic poses, as if in anticipation of a calamity, real or fantasised, which is yet to come. Subjected often to very visible transformations by a violent brush, these figures hover in a somewhat “non-location”. This sense of trepidation is balanced through the subdued humour which traces its way across the depicted environments seen in falling birds and out of place domestic objects or furniture. This surreal approach, although at times light-hearted, paradoxically contrives and obscures the serene landscapes adding nuanced levels of tension and angst allowing for a recontextualisation of the subjects.Through this we as viewers are privy to an enigmatic narrative, a fragmented glimpse of an absent happening. Sometimes what is left unspoken or stated obliquely can be what captures our attention most. What has happened here?
The muted tones of the canvases offer up a stillness necessitating reflection and pause on behalf of the viewer. The scenes of habitation, characters and objects are there as devices to arouse our feelings and cause inward reflection. In this way the viewer is invited to collaborate in the production of the work utilising the freedom of their subjectivity and imagination in ascribing meaning, narrative and subtext.
A tendency towards a highly imaginative mode of representational painting lends itself to this. The photographic framing of the scenes attempts to model a real structure and framework through which this fictional world can become relatable and understood .We are presented with images of the familiar and the invented, an idiosyncratic combination, and yet are left to surmise what has taken place. The paint is applied with immaculate precision, contributing to the paintings stillness, and in places serving to highlight some contained, yet volatile marks. Murky tones of blues, greys and browns colour desolate scenes. But these paired down hues do not subtract from the paintings intensity. Divisive use of white captures our attention and adds a focal points. This duality is abundant in the works, and affords the paintings an elusive and mysterious air. They resist, and yet, are so visually giving.