Jason Benjamin and Belinda Fox

Thursday, 05 November 2009, 7-9pm

Guest-of-Honour: Ms. Penny Burtt, Deputy High Commissioner, Australian High Commission

FOST Gallery and guest curator Anna Layard are pleased to present two of Australia’s most exciting contemporary artists, Jason Benjamin and Belinda Fox. Both are represented in important collections including the Australian National Gallery, Canberra, Parliament House Melbourne and the National Gallery of Victoria. They had recently been voted into Australia’s ‘Top 50 Most Collectable Artists 2009’ published by Art Collector Magazine.

Benjamin’s works have a mysterious, haunting edge to them, whether the subject is a sweeping landscape or a floral composition. They possess a monumental cinematic quality that is unique, with accompanying titles that conjure up an alternative viewpoint. His works shows a sensitive understanding of form and light, possessing subtle tonalities within these strong compositions. He has twice been a finalist in the Archibald Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW and has won the Packing Room Prize in 2005.

Fox’s exquisitely crafted works are imbibed with a quiet contemplation and subtlety which belie their political and social content. The confluence of Eastern and Western iconography in her works reflect the state of flux in current geopolitics, and the continual search for balance and harmony in this increasingly fragmented world. Fox won the Burnie Print Prize in 2007.

Exhibition period: 06-28 November 2009