'Nothing To See Here'

A week ago today I finally made the trip down to London to visit Oliver Jeffers' exhibition 'Nothing To See Here' in the Lazarides Gallery on its last day of being open to the public.

This small, understated gallery situated just off Oxford Street was the perfect choice to house Jeffers' artwork in his first London-based exhibition. Its natural interior consisting of bare-brick and white walls with wooden flooring complimented the series of works beautifully; varying from large, traditionally painted canvases to a collection of scattered hammers nailed on the wall.

His still-life paintings referenced 18th & 19th century landscapes whilst featuring contrasting images of men in smart suits and objects associated with modern-life. These subjects provided the perfect contradiction to explore recurring themes of censorship and power in today's society. Through these works the artist studied society's desire to be in control, and explored the issue of social ignorance and peoples' relentless need to feel empowered.

In another set of artwork, Jeffers continued his career-long exploration of the relationship between words and pictures. In this case, by defacing the traditionally painted canvases with a contradictory statement, i.e. 'Nothing To See Here', the viewer felt conflicted over which source of information to believe.

An incredibly thought-provoking collection of works demonstrating Oliver Jeffers' differing artistic approaches to very pertinent social issues. It was humbling to be able to see these works up close and the exhibition exceeded all my expectations - a beautiful collection of artwork!

A big thank you to my beautiful, favourite red-head, Melissa, who accompanied me!