Metro Gallery is delighted to welcome acclaimed Australian artist, Vincent Fantauzzo, into its stable of artists.

The winner of the 2011 Metro Art Award will present his first solo exhibition at Metro Gallery in September after joining the gallery this week.

Vincent Fantauzzo rose to prominence in 2008 with his Archibald Prize entry, a haunting portrait of the late Heath Ledger, that won the artist his first of two consecutive People’s Choice awards.

Last year the 34 year old Melbourne artist claimed a trifecta of coveted Australian art awards. They included the world’s most lucrative portrait prize, the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize, for his depiction of director, Baz Luhrmann, the Archibald Packing Room Prize and Australia’s richest award for emerging young talent, the Metro Art Award.

Vincent joins leading emerging and established artists represented by Metro Gallery including John Olsen, Michael Peck, Criss Canning, D*Face, Hush and ABOVE.

“Metro Gallery is committed to supporting and nurturing artistic talent in Australia. We’re privileged to welcome Vincent Fantauzzo into the fold and are excited to present a solo exhibition of work later this year.” said Metro Gallery Director, Alex McCulloch.

Renowned for his portrait work, Vincent Fantauzzo’s art has been likened to cinematic stills, with a stunning level of detail and accuracy that carries emotive, powerful and striking honesty. Through the use of contrasting elements of light and dark, shadows and colours, he creates a depth that heightens the narrative’s realism and theatrical effect.

Unable to read well as a child and later kicked out of school, Fantauzzo was drawn into the world of storytelling through film, inspired by the idea that imagination is more important than knowledge.

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“In the same way an art gallery space can sometimes isolate its audience, fashion shows can make people feel, ‘How do I turn up? How do I dress? Can I be myself? Can I have an opinion?’,” concedes Vincent Fantauzzo, one of Australia’s most celebrated portrait artists, sometime model, movie-maker and L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival regular.

That’s why, this year, LMFF has enlisted nine local ambassadors or “Friends of the Festival” — including ballet dancer Andrew Killian, models Nicole Truniio and Alexandra Agoston, DJ Andy Murphy, restaurateur Sharon van Haandel and Fantauzzo — to highlight the natural relationship between fashion and creative opinion.

“It’s about making people feel comfortable about expressing themselves not just through clothes, but by crossing over boundaries like art and music,” explains the softly spoken 34-year-old, who became something of a household name with his People’s Choice Award-winning Archibald portrait of friend Heath Ledger in 2008, then last year clinched the world’s richest portrait prize — the Doug Moran — with an image of his close friend Baz Luhrmann.

“There are no boundaries across the arts spectrum anymore. Creative people often have a strong personal style or taste and a good eye for things — for example, often someone who dresses well will know how to furnish their house well,” he says, referencing several of his multi-talented creative buddies — celebrity chef Matt Moran, supermodel Jessica Hart and Luhrmann — throughout our conversation.

Birmingham-born Fantauzzo, who moved to Melbourne as a boy and still lives there with his beautiful wife, Michelle, and son, Luca, is well placed to be an expert on this “‘multi-hat” phenomenon despite having had a rocky start at working life after leaving school at age 14 with undiagnosed dyslexia, before he tried art school in his twenties and eventually graduated with a master’s. He will soon co-direct a feature film, the remake of 1960 Hollywood-meets-Hong Kong classic The World of Sizzle Wong, based on the 1957 book of the same name, for Paramount. “Most of the inspiration for my painting comes from film and photography,” he offers by way of explanation.

The business side of movie-making, however, he’s leaving to the experts, including Kim Ledger, father of Heath, with whom he’s still close. “He’s got great connections in the industry and he’s really passionate about it. Honestly, I can’t even produce lunch,” he says.

Adding to his work commitments this year is an exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria, along the same lines as his marathon 30 Portraits 30 Days NYC project in New York. (each day he painted someone new, with each subject — including random New Yorkers, but also the likes of Hart, model Chanel Iman and New York fashion week doyenne Fern Mallis — pointing him to the next day’s subject), to raise money for a charity organisation called Lucid that helps people with drug and alcohol addiction.

“In Australia I want to focus on painting inspirational people. I don’t want to plan it too much yet; I want the result to still be organic.” He’s also hoping to complete two 2012 Archibald entries, one of Silverchair front man Daniel Johns (“He’s a little outrageous, but just so committed to and passionate about what he does”) and the other of singer Kimbra.

“Ideally, I’d love the two of them to collaborate on something musically, then I’d paint them together,” he says.

Fantauzzo also directed a video and photographic package submission for the International Emerging Fashion. Talent Award (IEFTS), hosted by the British Fashion Council last month during London fashion week. Instigated by LMFF arid entitled The New Antipodeans, it showcased designers Christopher Esber, above, Dress Up, Song for the Mute and limedrop.

But the Melbourne festival says Fantauzzo, will be nothing but fun. “I’m excited that I can turn up to events that are just down the street from my house, drink champagne and look at models,” he jokes. ‘Seriously, this festival is a great event about culture and fashion. which should include everybody It lets people say, ‘Fashion’s not my scene, but I can be involved.’ You can just go and do some people-watching if you want.

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The Build Up (originally 8 minutes) off Kimbra’s new album, Vows is something rather special.

It delivers the haunting, melancholic tone which is then dripped in raw felt lyrics and beautifully controlled vocals. This song in particular reminds me of Princess Mononoke, one of my favourite films that has a great film score composed by Joe Hisaishi.

It shows a brave move from Kimbra, considering the rest her album is glazed in catchy nu-jazz sounds, and for me, personally, it makes me respect her more as an artist, knowing how developed and confident she is with her music.

FABRIC SOUND.

On each window Fantauzzo has created visual narratives in which are displayed the looks created by the most promising fashion designers such as Above Label, Christopher Esber, Limedrop, Dress Up and Song for the Mute. A visual narrative that brings fashion to the city in a direct way and visible from everybody walking to get to Somerset House.

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No. In fact, Australian fashion is sometimes sophisticated beyond imagining. Since design pioneers such as Linda Jackson and Jenny Kee took the first experimental steps into an “Australian aesthetic” in the 1970s and ’80s (Linda Jackson Bush Couture is on at the NGV’s Ian Potter Centre until September) a stream of fashion creatives – Toni Maticevski, Anna Plunkett and Luke Sales (Romance Was Born), Dion Lee, Scanlan & Theodore, Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton (sass & bide) and Christopher Esber among the most recent – tapped deeply into global themes and the Zeitgeist.

Yet, Aussie fashion still has “something” that, for example, made three fashionably dressed Melbourne girls I know of recognisable as just that – Australian – on the streets of San Francisco, Tokyo and Paris in recent years. “Maybe it’s that fine line [Aussie designers] walk,” Fantauzzo says. “They create something that’s quite elaborate but, depending on how you put it on, it can look really out there or it can be quite wearable. It’s your choice.” Maybe that’s it: unique, chameleon concepts that fit the wearer’s mood and, in a subtle way, say “Australian” to the beholder.

Fantauzzo was plunged into speculation about an Aussie fashion aesthetic by the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival. Fantauzzo is one of several “faces” representing the event (March 8-15) and although it’s not usually a gig that requires more than turning up and looking cool, Fantauzzo’s reputation as an artist was, apparently, too good not to exploit. Festival organisers commissioned him to photograph five carefully chosen local fashion brands in a way that would make them stand out in the world. Fantauzzo’s subsequent short film and stills, titled The New Antipodeans, feature garments from ground-breaking fashion brands Song for the Mute (designers Lyna Ty and Melvin Tanaya won last year’s LMFF Designer Award), Christopher Esber, Above, Dress Up and Limedrop.

It’s Australia’s submission to the British Fashion Council’s inaugural International Fashion Showcase for emerging talent, a rare chance for one country’s cutting-edge designers to rocket-fuel their careers and possibly be lauded as a source of future trends. On Monday night (Tuesday, Australian time), festival chief executive Graeme Lewsey and chairman Laura Anderson will present the film, stills and an installation of garments to a room full of movers and shakers at a cocktail party at Australia House, London, as part of London Fashion Week.

Fantauzzo’s vision is realised in a moody, soft-lit clip with a breathy, original backtrack and suggestive narrative; “The idea that getting dressed into these clothes is as sexy as undressing,” he says. “That these clothes actually make you feel as sexy and sensual as getting undressed.” There’s not a kangaroo or gumleaf within cooee, of course; instead, he trusted that something uniquely Australian might fizz up of its own accord from the efforts of his team of Aussie creatives, including film director Barney Howells, producer Luke Coulson with music by the 1200 Techniques crew. Whether it did, or not, you can judge on blog.lmff.com.au and by comparing the submission with others from countries just as intent on asserting an identity, at britishfashioncouncil.com/internationalfashionshowcase.

More than 80 designers from 19 nations including Botswana, Estonia, Croatia, the Caribbean, Italy, Japan and the US are competing in the award, to be decided by judges from the British Fashion Council, Victoria & Albert Museum, Vogue US, Royal College of Art and The Guardian. The winner will be announced on March 30 before the award’s heavy promotion via social media and the installations and events at the entrants’ respective London embassies. “It’s a significant opportunity for us to be scrutinised by major players in the international fashion circuit,” says the project manager for the Australian submission, Yolanda Finch. “Our designers have more than enough integrity to stack up on that stage.”

She says the designs are diverse but fuse harmoniously in Fantauzzo’s vision and plug into a “global visual language”. “It’s a mixed bag, just as Australia is a really mixed bag: Christopher Esber’s keen understanding of high end; Above’s more intellectual, subtle approach to basics; Limedrop’s quirky styles and playfulness …” Finch is particularly impressed by Esber, the young Sydney designer whose collection triggered a shock-and-awe response at his first Australian Fashion Week.

“We’ll be hearing a lot about him in the coming years,” she says but adds that any one of the five “New Antipodeans” has global star potential. “Future fashion could be driven [by] an Australian designer having a significant voice internationally,” she says. “There’s no barrier.” And, no kangaroos or gumleaves required.

Article Sydney Morning Herald

He has also won a multitude of art prizes including the Doug Moran Portrait Prize and the 2009 People’s Choice Award for his portrait of actor Brandon Walters from Baz Lurhmann’s film Australia.

In 2010 Vincent completed a month-long painting marathon in New York where he painted portraits of 30 identities including DJ Mark Ronson, former boxing champion Lennox Lewis and model Chanel Iman.

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30 Portraits 30 Days is based on projects Fantauzzo undertook in New York and Hong Kong. Fantauzzo is friends with Ledger’s father, Kim, who is managing a film project, The Return of Suzie Wong, that the artist is co-directing with Barney Howells. Fantauzzo said Ledger senior was passionate about the film industry and a great support. ”He always looks out for me and gives me advice.” The painter is heading to LA in the new year to talk to scriptwriters, then in March he’ll be lining up his fashionable clothes as one of the faces of the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival. He’ll need eight outfits for eight days.

Painter needs a fit arm for marathon.

”Baz can’t paint,” says Fantauzzo. ”And I can’t make films. But I’m often inspired by films, and he’s often inspired by paintings, and we wanted to come together and blur the lines. So we made up a story” – the subject of The Creek, 1977, a painting that won this year’s Metro Art Prize – ”and it’s something we’re still working on, something we want to develop over years.” Some day, they both hope, it will become a movie; in the meantime, it has grown into an installation, a work that can be seen in the Lobby Gallery at the Sofitel hotel.

The idea for an installation came from a time when they were both in Fantauzzo’s studio one night. He was working on a painting for which he had also made a video; he showed it to Luhrmann, who suggested projecting it onto the painting. ”And then we switched off a light, and the street light came through, with bars of the studio window directed onto it, and it brought the painting to life.” Soon, they were talking about highlighting additional elements, adding music and sound.
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For the first stage of The Creek, 1977, he says, he and Luhrmann talked about ”the heightened drama of Renaissance paintings, that they were like stills from a play or a film”. They came up with the idea for a painting that could be ”a still from a movie not yet made”.

The work draws on details from Luhrmann’s childhood, growing up in a service station in a country town, as well as Fantauzzo’s memories. They devised characters and a storyline to underpin what we see: a young man being pulled from a car that has crashed into a creek. He is a drifter who has arrived in a small town, and stays with a family of three boys. ”Accidents and scenarios start happening around him; is it his presence, is he causing those things for some reason, or is it just a coincidence?”

Where the specific details of the painting fit in – does it show the beginning of a film or the end, is the young man alive or dead, was the crash accidental or deliberate, was anyone else involved – is still to be determined. He and Luhrmann are interested, Fantauzzo says, in what other people make of the possibilities.

”Even though the image is quite literal, people have very different ideas about it.”

In the installation, the viewer enters a black booth, experiencing the painting, projections, lights, sound effects of a car crash and voices, and a brief score, as well as photographs and additional paintings, additional material that is a mixture of real and imagined images. A smaller version of the painting won the Metro prize; the installation has already been to the Hong Kong International Art Fair and the West Australian Museum.

Fantauzzo is further down the track with another cinematic reference project, The Return of Suzie Wong, a collaboration with director Barney Howells, with an exhibition on show in a Hong Kong gallery. It is based on The World of Suzie Wong, a 1957 novel that was made into a movie starring William Holden and Nancy Kwan.

Fantauzzo and Howells worked on casting and location scouting; Fantauzzo created black-and-white storyboards and painted 15 key images for the exhibition. Talks are taking place with Paramount about Fantauzzo and Howells directing a remake together.

The Creek, 1977 is at the Sofitel, Collins Street, until November 25.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/blurring-the-lines-from-one-image-to-a-moving-picture-20111031-1ms0q.html

Blurring the lines from one image to a moving picture.

This October sees Fantauzzo unveil his highly anticipated Suzie Wong series, 50 years after the popular book The World of Suzie Wong was first published. Collaborating with Australian film director Barney Howells, the series, comprising fifteen major pieces that merge painting with narrative story-telling, will be showcased at 10 Chancery Lane.

Crossing over into film territory is nothing new for the young artist. Last year Fantauzzo and acclaimed director Baz Luhrman (he sexed up Romeo and Juliet and showed us that Nicole Kidman could sing, sort of, in Moulin Rouge) presented a cross-media installation at Art HK 10, The Creek, which fused painting with moving image.  For the Suzie Wong project Fantauzzo and Howells travelled to Hong Kong in search of a modern interpretation of the story, trawling the streets of Central and Wanchai for location scouting, and casting locals rather than celebrities, lending the works a grittier authenticity.

The idea for the exhibition is to present the collection, which will depict key moments in their reworked narrative, alongside illustrated storyboards that flesh out the story. In its entirety the exhibition will allow the audience to experience the narrative as if they were viewing the movie itself. The works will have the scale and resonance of cinematic pieces, while the storyboards evoke the pre-production process, and have the feel of a graphic novel.

The exhibition will debut at 10 Chancery Lane 6 October 2011.

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