Days Like These

Saint Cloche is excited to reveal the work of contemporary landscape painter, Fiona Barrett-Clark with her latest solo show, ‘Days Like These’.

Fiona’s dreamy works are at first glance seemingly realistic depictions of the suburban landscape, but on closer reflection they are pared back, graphic works, produced on plywood, with a slightly grainy texture, imbued with a deep sense of nostalgia.

"Most of us live in the suburbs which hug the rim of our major cities, a land of bricks and glass, surrounded by hot grids of black asphalt. Towards the end of the day, the light begins to fade, and nature regains the upper hand. The imperfections of suburbia are hidden in dark shadows and amplify the show going on in the sky.

For me, the world is at its most beautiful and varied at the day’s end, this collection of works explores that magic hour between late afternoon and early evening during 2023. In this world of have and have not, division and anger, the sky provides a glimmer of the sublime, with access granted to all.

These works invite the viewer to consider more consciously their own relationship with the world around them and remind them to look up and see what is just outside the window."

Fiona lives in the suburbs of Sydney on Dharug land, where though only 30 minutes from the CBD, her home back into bushland and she uses this area as her subject matter. Her works focus on the afternoon and evening, capturing the colour and mood of the sky contrasting against dark shadowed suburban landscape, a time of the day that can be both incredibly beautiful and simultaneously eerie. She wants to awaken people to the magnificence of nature that often goes unnoticed and is more than likely just outside their door.

Fiona graduated from The Sydney Gallery School in 1998, majoring in painting and since then has had 10 solo exhibitions. She has been represented by Saint Cloche since 2020.