A L E X G A W R O N S K I

Alex Gawronski, Australia Worse than Greece, 2020-2023

(Acrylic on canvas – 1220 x 905 mm)

‘End-to-End’, George Fraser Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand

The painting, Australia Worse than Greece was commenced just prior to the appearance of the Covid-19 virus but is somewhat prophetic of the socio-economic issues drastically highlighted by it. ‘Worse than Greece’ pertains here to an IMF comparison of the beleaguered state of the contemporary Greek economy to that of Australia. Those aware of the political circumstances underpinning the Greek economic collapse would likely scoff at the media hysteria of this comparison. Greece’s popular support for its secession from the Eurozone followed by the sudden about face of its then prime minister, was answered by Brussels via the imposition of severe austerity policies. These have effectively transformed Greece into a vassal state of the European Union dominated by the strength of the German economy, a strength conditioned by historical circumstances (and not simply relativised by the alleged innate ‘laziness’ or ‘corruption’ of modern Greeks). The severity of the effects of austerity politics on Greece’s population were only magnified by Covid restrictions.

Australia on the other hand, a country steeped in and embracing the mythologies of neoliberal free-marketeerism, has largely managed to steer its way clear of the direst economic straits. At least comparatively. The hysteria of the headline highlighted in this work is echoed by others surrounding it. Together they create something of a paranoid palimpsest of contemporary liberal imaginings of external threats to its centrality – refugees, drugs, bad management. Out of context, the headline ‘Australia Worse than Greece’ is doubly ironic as in the minds of many, both countries are known primarily as tourist destinations. They are countries blessed with mild, sunny weather, beautiful beaches, and other enviable natural settings. Decontextualised, a comparison of this kind indicates a competition about which country is the better getaway, with Greece winning (possibly because the bonus of its archeological heritage and cultural significance to Western civilisation).

Alex Gawronski, Missing, 2022

(Acrylic on canvas – 610 x 610 mm)

End-to-End’, ELAM Project Gallery, ELAM School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland, New Zealand

The painting Missing self-reflexively considers conceptions of ‘content’ in art: a work’s contents is never simply what appears but is equally what doesn’t. Content is also theft, removal, appropriation, translation, disfigurement. Understanding of art is based on knowledge of such acts and what is simultaneously concealed and revealed in them. Using ‘content’ to indicate its apparent absence is to invite viewers to project what is missing.