Oils are designed to be layered – when they do a basic paint-by-numbers rough blocking style with no consideration for the noble medium it twists my gut!I saw one series by an artist who was inspired by Gaugin but had clearly never actually studied him or even seen a Gaugin in true life. He interpreted the somewhat flat appearing nature of Gaugin’s works to mean that he could use sloppy workmanship and not even have the rough blocks of color meet each other. While a true Gaugin has a complexity that belies a simple first glance, these works were simplistic with no real depth and appalling technique.I think it is crucial to understand the techniques involved with each medium and find out what works for you.

I am uncomfortable about this passage: Australian artists who aspire to the kind of career that Hatoum has achieved should take note that any trace of discernable personal identity must be erased from their practice before they will be admitted to the international touring circuit of contemporary art. Expressionism will not be permitted…. ok, maybe I am dumb, but all I can see is the end of “Sunday in the Park with George” where the descendant of Georges Seurat keeps trying to recapture the talent of his famous ancestor but churns out 7 almost identical installations with lasers and fog machines and everything except artistic talent and passion. when seen in a counterpane to Act 1 where Seurat is working to develop his epic work, it becomes especially poignant that he just doesn’t seem to grok what art really is, he seems to flounder and try to create what people want him to create.