John Baird’s exuberant still life and seascape paintings unite expressive brushwork with strong simplified design. His seascapes are particularly engaging, reconciling both pattern and depth into a harmony of movement and colour. An early association with the Roar group in Melbourne tells in Baird’s naive forms and everyday subject matter. Reacting against mid century abstraction and burgeoning conceptualism, that group’s aesthetic vision emphasised a primitive style and an expressive mood, drawing on the work of French painter Dubuffet and Australian figurative expressionists Boyd, Nolan and Tucker.
Baird’s works share the optimism and vitality of that very Melbourne movement. These are paintings you could live with.
Exhibition runs until 24th September