Ian Parry

For Ian Parry, all things come back to the sea.

The sea in winter:  a constant brooding presence underpinning a dark- glowing Tasmanian sky. But there is no sentimentality here: Parry’s works are powerful serene presences; explorations of colour and light within an enveloping intensity of darkness.

Parry paints with boldness and a considered poise, creating tensions and balances between the complex tonal values and textures of his richly coloured canvases. In his Sea in Winter works, Parry scumbles, glazes, builds and balances his colours and paint surfaces to create profound seascapes that are as much reflections of the human soul, as they are meditations on the sea.

But the man reflects the seasons, and as the days begin to lengthen and the long Tasmanian winter begins to lift, Parry’s paintings likewise undergo a transformation of renewal; becoming increasingly abstract celebrations of clear light, of space and of colour harmony.

This annual cycle has become an established seasonal practice for Parry. The expansive summertime abstracts are here exhibited alongside the winter seascapes as counterpoints of season and spirit.

Ian Parry has exhibited widely in Tasmania, Melbourne and regional Victoria. He is represented in major public and private collections in Australia and overseas, including the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, and The Phillips Collection, Washington.