A New Exhibition + Book Dedicated To Works In Gouache By Gija Artist Paddy Bedford 

D’Lan Contemporary is delighted to announce a new exhibition and book dedicated to works on paper by one of Australia’s most celebrated and critically acclaimed artists, Paddy Bedford. The exhibition – which opens in Melbourne on 17 August – will present over 40 works on paper by Bedford and will coincide with the publication and launch of a book of the same name.

Paddy Bedford (c.1922–2007), known by his Gija name Nyunkuny or Goowoomji, performed ceremonial body painting from an early age, but only began painting on canvas in 1998, at the age of 76. He had an immediate and powerful command of the medium and in his remarkable, yet short career as an artist, attracted national and international critical acclaim. His work has been exhibited widely in Australia, Europe and the U.S. and is held in several major private and institutional collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Paddy Bedford’s relationship with gouache began at the start of his painting career in 1998. On a trip to Melbourne with fellow prominent Gija artists Hector Jandany and Rusty Peters, the three men created a series of 23 drawings and paintings, known as the Jirrawun Suite, at artist Kim Westcott’s studio in Brunswick. Bedford returned to the medium throughout his career and his works in gouache became an important – and often daily – part of his practice.

Paddy Bedford, 2003. Photography: Georges Petitjean

Far from ancillary to his more extensive paintings on canvas and board, Bedford’s gouache works reveal much about his instinct for form and minimalism and his joy of painting. Individually, they can be appreciated for their poetry. Still, when exhibited en masse, it is an opus of colour and composition that gives insight into the unique studio practice of a celebrated Gija artist.

Paddy Bedford: Gouache – the exhibition – will present over 40 many never-before-seen gouache works that have been held in Trust since their creation, including the last black and white series that Bedford painted at the end of his life.

These significant works have never been exhibited before and are unique in that they capture a sense of the fragility and vulnerability in the last years of Paddy Bedford’s life of paint.

Paddy Bedford: Gouache – the book – published by D’Lan Contemporary in association with the artist’s Estate, is the first book wholly dedicated to the gouache practice of Paddy Bedford. The Melbourne launch of the book will take place on Saturday 17^th August, the day of the exhibition opening at D’Lan Contemporary, and the Sydney launch of the book will take place on Saturday 7^th September at Sydney Contemporary Art Fair.

Paddy Bedford: Gouache features over eighty works on paper, many of which have never been seen before, and contains written contributions from those who knew Bedford and his practice intimately – including friend and executor Frances Kofod, and curator Georges Petitjean – with an overview from D’Lan Contemporary’s Head of Research, Vanessa Merlino.

The book will provide a fresh perspective on Paddy Bedford’s studio practice and evolving relationship with his subject and medium, reasserting his place as one of the most significant artists in the history of the Australian First Nations art movement. The book is available for purchase from the gallery, and from Readings, Carlton.

The exhibition and book launch Melbourne precedes the presentation of eight works in gouache (and the Sydney launch of the book) at this year’s Sydney Contemporary Art Fair, followed by the exhibition of 15 significant paintings and 20 works in gouache by the artist at this year’s Frieze Masters Art Fair in London.

PADDY BEDFORD: GOUACHE
Exhibition + Melbourne Book Launch: Saturday 17 August, 3pm-5pm
Exhibition 17 August – 20 September 2024
D’Lan Contemporary Melbourne, 40 Exhibition Street, VIC 3000
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Sydney Book Launch: Saturday 6 September, 1pm
Sydney Contemporary Art Fair | Booth I01

Media enquiries: nicole@dlancontemporary.com.au