<
NOV23             RETURN TO NATURE Xavier Wear Gardener

“These four paintings are about homebuilding. What I mean by “home” is perhaps better defined as a sanctuary, a bubble. A need shared among all creatures. Homes and burrows, nests and cars. Whilst it is an undeniably precious process, all require the repurposing of both materials and space. The innate flaw of construction is that it necessitates destruction. The imagery of pests and invasive species perfectly parallels our relationship to both the material nature of home building as well as our state of mind we inhabit whilst constructing the home. The wood, the stone, and the mud we use to build our homes are much like the pests we pluck from the earth. Repurposing and reclaiming them both to shape our own world for comfort. Invasive species, like our homes, often disrupt ecosystems and environments. Our desire for expansion and convenience, alongside our nest building tendencies, mirror the behavior of these creatures. We too cruise upon land, like a fleet of pests.

The title for the collective works ‘return to nature’ was ripped from a development display suite in Bellfield (pictured above). A mostly empty lot on Liberty Parade, with a steel box and these words on the front door. I found it funny and undeniably fallacious, the feeling this scene invoked stuck with me. Rather than a direct harsh critique, it’s a ridiculous feeling I wish to provoke with these works. Ant on a raft, toad on the road, the paintings are a fictitious depiction of this idea. They embrace the beauty and the brilliance of home building, as well as the ugly and comical nature of it. The pests are parading upon or within their mobile homes. It’s an ugly reminder of our place within construction and destruction. But the homes they ride have character and meaning. Built of precious objects and meaningful items, imbued with poetry. . . These paintings contain all facets of home, the good and the ugly. Both my work and this empty lot are a surreal reflection upon the idea of home.”

Xavier Wear Gardener is a visual artist, working and practicing in Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country. This exhibition “Return to nature” is Xavier’s most recent exploration into the idea of home, more specifically the process of homebuilding..Imbued with poetry, fingerprints and history, the paintings are a surreal reflection upon construction, deconstruction, homes, nests and cars. Consisting of four large scale works, Xavier Wear Gardener and Quality invite you to join us for an immersive visual experience and shared reflection upon our own meaningful homes.