Kate Vassallo presented Echo and Traces, a solo exhibition of paintings at Airspace Projects in Marrickville, Sydney.
Bringing together two interconnected bodies of work, the exhibition explored abstract interpretations of light, colour, depth and nostalgia, reflecting Kate’s ongoing interest in process, repetition and the passage of time.
The Echo paintings are softly geometric compositions built through multiple thin layers of paint. Developed through a controlled and repetitive process over the course of a year, each layer follows a system of randomly scattered points and radial brushwork. As colours overlap and interact, they create shifting forms and subtle variations in the painted surfaces, embedding a sense of time, memory and labour into each work.
In contrast, the Trace works are created on raw canvas using leftover paint from the Echo paintings. Rather than following a set process, these works develop through the incidental marks, washes and textures produced by cleaning brushes, palettes and other studio materials. What would otherwise be discarded becomes an extension of the painting process, allowing the works to evolve through chance and accumulated gestures.
Presented together, the two bodies of work reveal the interconnected processes of Kate’s studio practice, balancing control and chance, intention and spontaneity. Through their visual relationship, Echo and Traces offered an insight into the often unseen processes of making and the unexpected connections that emerge within an artist’s practice.
