"I first visited Japan in 1983 and not unlike now after many trips there I still cannot definitively pinpoint what it is that takes me back. I know that I enjoy being carried along by the mix of history, culture and landscape that are fused in it's identity.
I attempted to begin paintings derived from Japanese source material (drawings, photographs, literature) many times over the course of the last several years. All had been scrapped as they felt distant and formal, rather than the more impulsive, emotional connection I was looking to make.
"Set Yourself Free" began as a kind of plea to myself on every level. Though it may not be obvious immediately in this work, I wanted to undo many of my accepted ways of working and by extension my outlook in general.
Like taking a big breath of fresh air".
Jason Benjamin, 2007
Coinciding with Jason Benjamin's
upcoming exhibition at Metro 5 Gallery will be the launch of Jason's new
book:
What Binds Us
Characteristic of the large scale found in most of his paintings, images
can hardly be contained to a single page, spilling out onto their neighbouring
sheet.
Produced in collaboration with Ken McGregor, the monograph offers up an insightful interview that runs throughout the book between the artist and former Australian Style editor Jack Marx.
