Cary Kwok presents new works at Herald St, which are currently on view at their Museum St premises. The show features a suite of acrylic and ink paintings encased in artist’s frames, which present quiet moments suffused with tenderness. Still lifes of domestic items, portraits of gazing men, and sublime landscapes are rendered in a soft, dreamlike realism, marking a change in mood while continuing imagined, cinematic narratives which have pervaded Kwok’s practice. Installed among these is a functional light switch by the artist mimicking vintage Bakelite styles, its phallic toggle continuing the humour and eroticism of his earlier work.
The intimate vignettes in the exhibition unfold like scenes in a movie. Storytelling lies at the heart of Kwok’s work, inspired by the period films he watched as a child and his continued passion for the genre. His paintings are akin to film stills and details of sets – even when devoid of characters, the carefully accentuated objects and directed lighting hint at events unravelled and actions to come. In one work, a looming head casts a shadow on a warm burling wood grain near wisps of smoke drifting from a lit cigarette, resting in an ashtray and gently smudged with lipstick. The same pink gloss is found on the rim of a wine glass in another piece, with raking light revealing the gleaming translucence of an opened wine bottle sitting just out of the frame. When conceiving these works, Kwok sets a scene in his head, referencing directors he admires, continuing plotlines from his own previous compositions, and playing out fantasies in his mind.
The object-like paintings in the exhibition above all emanate a mood. A number are bathed in a palpable 1980s quotidian glamour, while others reveal a contemporary romanticism. Loaded with poignancy, the works blend personal musings and imaginative reveries. Through these glowing tableaus, Kwok encapsulates moments of wonder, magnifying emotions and revelling in the magic of details.
New works by Cary Kwok are on view through July 15th at the new Museum St Premises at Herald St, 43 Museum St, London