Tom Ferson | Visual arts
Tom Ferson
Phone: +61 415 807 941
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24.01.2022 Artists! Everybody! I could use some opinions. I'm currently sitting on two finished paintings - both of which I'm very proud of for different reasons- that I am yet to post. It's taken a while (years), but I've pulled together the concept and plan for my next solo show that I'll exhibit in Melbourne in 2021 with any luck. My worry is that if I share all the work online it will give you all less incentive to come and show up for the real thing! It's also very hard to plan aro...und an actual exhibition with actual humans in attendance because everything's so darn uncertain. If you're an artist, do you keep some work under wraps? Do you share it all? It takes me a while to make work, so my thinking is that I present myself in a way that makes me seem even less active than I actually am when I don't share it all with you all. On the one hand, who gives a shit how busy people think I am. I am living and content and that's what matters. On the other hand , this is my career and I want it to continue to grow and I want to show the people who have been there to support me that I'm still here and I'm still doing this. I am also very aware that Instagram is not the be all and end all, and that there are potential exhibition attendees who will currently have nothing to do with this platform. Insta is just my main port of contact with my audience these days so it bears consideration. My work is often very detail oriented and I am very conscious of the surface. These are not facets of artwork that are very well exhibited on Instagram, and my hope is that people will endeavour to see the work in person when possible, but that won't be possible for people in different cities across the world. I'm leaning towards sharing it all and crossing my fingers that it works out when the time comes. Thoughts? . I drew this little still life a few months ago... I think... (what even is time anymore?) using the @fabercastellglobal Pitt Artists Pens. ... Dear @fabercastellaustralia, Please pay me to draw stuff again. It was fun the first time and I like the stuff you gave me. Love from Tom. ... Thanks for tuning in everybody. . . #drawing #melbourneartist #sketch #sketchbook #art See more
24.01.2022 Isolation Self Portrait in Red Jumper. 30cm x 30cm // 12" x 12" Oils on clear primed aluminium. Painted using the #zornpalette. .... There's a lot about this time that I'm appreciating. Time to be bored and to utilise the boredom as motivation to do the things that I value but am usually rather good at distracting myself from. Time to sit in front of a mirror and to move paint around to try to capture something of myself. I am happy with this one, because it looks bold and strong and because I don't necessarily feel that way most of the time. . Before I moved to Melbourne from Sydney, I had plans to move to the Blue Mountains in NSW to live a life very similar to the way I'm living now. Instead, my path took me to a more active and social lifestyle in Melbourne, filled with new friends and live music and art exhibitions and the buzz of a pumping city where young people can thrive and enjoy themselves. That has been good for me. It pulled me out of my shell a little and I have formed some friendships that have made me a stronger person and filled my life with more joy and love. It's my friends more than anything that I'm missing right now. You know who you are, friendos. I love you and I miss you. . I've also given myself a bit of mental space to try to be present during difficult times. I haven't had a drop of alcohol since January. I know that everybody has their vices and different coping mechanisms, and I am not sharing this to shame anybody living their life in a different way to me. I am sharing it to say that I think that it has helped me stay in touch with the way that I'm feeling more often and to stay on top of my mental wellbeing. If you think cutting back from one of your vices would help you mentally, what is it that's holding you back from the change right now? . Just checking in with you all, friends. Stay well. . . . @langridgeartistcolours #painting #artwork #portraitpainting #portrait #selfportrait #isolationselfportrait #isolationportrait #isolationpainting #lockdown2020 #lockdownportraits #oilpaint #oilpainting #artistsofmelbourne #artistselfie #australianartist See more
22.01.2022 I've been thinking a lot about the scale of paintings. A large painting can be very involving. It can be high impact, and visually demanding. Sometimes they exude confidence, sometimes arrogance. There's a self-assuredness about committing to a large painting- to using more materials to express a single concept. I'll have a few larger scale works in my next show. I made them feeling confident that the concepts would work at the scale I painted them at. I don't often feel conf...ident that they'll sell though. It's a big commitment buying a big thing in terms of the cost and the space. I try not to let that affect my choices when making paintings, but sometimes the doubt creeps in and I don't back myself as fully as I perhaps should. My work tends to be quite time consuming as well, and however much time I spend putting into one idea is time that I'm not spending executing other newer concepts. I've spent time recently working on some smaller scale paintings so that I can focus on working through more ideas. A small painting can draw you in. It can invite intimacy. I can exude a quiet confidence. Making a small work that speaks as loudly as a large one is potentially more challenging but can be very satisfying. To the artists out there, do you let money and space affect the scale you choose to work on? Are the paintings the best they can be? To the art lovers, do you take large paintings more seriously? What does a big painting mean to you? . While I have been seriously considering all these things, I also just really wanted an excuse to dress up in my tailored suit. . Pictured is my 2017 painting 'Gobstopper (Jawbreaker)' from my solo show Intersections. It is 120cm x 150cm / 47" X 59". . . . . . #artistsofmelbourne #australianartist #australianpainter #eroticart #artistselfie #selfie #art #paint #painting #artgallery #theartlife #artistsinlockdown #covidportrait #portraiture #sexuality #acrylicpainting #portrait See more
13.01.2022 UFC Study #5. 30cm x 45cm Oils on mounted ply panel. Painted using the #zornpalette. .... These are definitely getting looser, and looseness is certainly something I'd like to involve more of in my work, but not necessarily as as some kind of devolving direction. I want to get better at choosing where to spend time within a painting and where looseness is more appropriate. This way I can direct focus and movement within the painting. I'm also trying to be more responsive- this image called for a looser approach, and I prioritised keeping the energy of some brushstrokes over working it more to obtain more of a likeness. . Moving houses messed with my painting flow, and now I've gotta pack down my studio as it's been getting no use over the past few months. I hope to be making more paintings soon... It's just proving really difficult right now. I'm feeling the toll of the uncertainty and disconnection. . . . . #mma #mmafighter #ufc #ufc196 #portraitpainting #portrait #oilpaint #oilpainting #portraiture #painting #art #artistsofmelbourne #artwork #artistsofinstagram #australianartist #isolationpainting #lockdown2020 #lockdownportraits #lockdown #lockdownlife See more
05.01.2022 UFC Study #2. 45cm x 30cm. Oil on mounted ply panel. . When I was first exposed to UFC I found it brutal and repulsive. I saw two people pummeling each other into bloodied submission, and turned away in disgust. ... Now, it helps having a few friends whose interest borders on fanaticism (*cough @ryanhoffmannstudio), but I have come to find it greatly entertaining. I love seeing wildly different fighting styles. I see huge egos and a sport that rewards extremity of character - on and off the Octagon. I see strength and dedication and skill. I also see sweaty, scantily clad men writhing and grappling - and I like that too. So, if you're sitting there thinking that some of these paintings are looking very homoerotic... well... You're on to something. If that makes you uncomfortable, that's probably worth thinking about. Is your enjoyment of an arrangement of shapes and colours impeded by your sexual lens? Are you wondering whether exploring the homoerotic in my art or in my private life makes me something? I think it makes me something. I think it makes me free. Free to continue to do whatever I want. . Peace out motherlickers. Live your own damn life. . . . @blessedmma @briantcity @danawhite . . . #ufc #ufcfightnight #homoeroticart #oilpaint #oilpainting #figurepainting #pride #australianartist #artistsofmelbourne #lockdown2020 #zornpalette See more
