PORTRAITS IN A WAITING ROOM 

ALEX ZUBRYN 

7 - 16 November 

2024

These large-scale portraits by Alex Zubryn were painted during the 1990s in a studio which had previously functioned as a waiting room – at a time when Alex was living in shared houses – a happy situation which afforded access to a readily available group of willing sitters.

Quite some time has passed since the participants “sat” and Alex painted – but this series of large works provide us with a snapshot/time capsule of Melbourne in the 1990s.

Portraiture is a very demanding genre for both the artist and the sitter – as it seems so often, that strong opinions are held regarding the outcome of the work– and so, in this case the sitters must all be congratulated for their willingness, faith and trust, as they all offered themselves up to the painter’s scrutiny –something which also speaks volumes about the strength of the many friendships.

These works enter a wonderful lineage of portraiture - paintings which somehow speak to us about a place and a moment – and viewing Alex’s paintings, we are readily reminded of the many portraits produced by both Max Beckmann and Alice Neel – works connected not only by vibrantly assured mark-making, but also by the integrity of the approach, confirming as they do - that even through portraiture - an artist might capture the substance of a particular time and a particular place.

As with many artists, the storage of paintings can be something of an issue – and so, these portraits were for some decades stored safely and snugly under a house– but now is their time – a time for them to be raised high on shoulders and brought splendidly into the light.