Berney-Gibson
Selected work:
Homecoming Queen
Green Plates
Goat Rodeo
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Homecoming Queen —
Schmick Contemporary
Group show w/ Alice Martin & Sadie Whelan
Curated by Annabelle McEwen
Homecoming Queen (Installation view #1)
Homecoming Queen (Installation view #2)
I’m uncomfortable when you’re in the House, 2024, solvent on lamb leather
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm.
&
It’ll be Real Nice, 2024, solvent and textile ink on lamb leather
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm.
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm.
&
It’ll be Real Nice, 2024, solvent and textile ink on lamb leather
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm.
Homecoming Queen (Installation view #2)
“Fergus Berney-Gibson’s work delves into themes of memory, presence, connection, and identity explored through printmaking techniques that combine manual and digital processes. This is achieved through the collation and re-contextualisation of images and text. In this case, using solvents to transfer scanned film negatives obtained from the artists Grandfather’s archive onto animal skins—resulting in a final image that embodies the retention of a memory. His process transforms these archival snapshots into obscured reproductions of the originals, capturing the ephemeral nature of personal and collective memory.
The use of animal skins as a surface evokes themes of the skin and body, also hinting at elements of kink and eroticism. The process of using solvents to transfer images leads to the emergence of low-quality yet romanticly floaty reproductions, reflecting themes of embodiment and memory—similar to the elusive feeling of memory recall. This can also be seen to represent the complex interplay between physical and emotional experiences and the challenge of seeking intimacy while maintaining self-preservation. The use of leather in combination with the degraded quality of the transferred images illustrates the struggle between closeness and distance reflecting the tension between connection and vulnerability. The merging of manual and digital aspects, accompanied by the utilisation of inherited imagery represents the negotiation between personal and inherited narratives. The domestic scenes portrayed in the work suggest a sense of nostalgia and childhood, the work bridges the artists personal history with universal themes of family, queerness, the patriarchy, memory, and our understanding of self and connection.
By merging physical practices with digital and archival processes Berney-Gibson’s work not only reflects the complexity of personal and collective history but also engages with deeper themes of intimacy, connection, and the marks we leave on each other.”
Text by Katerina Chellos
The golden boy and his infamous glass Eye, 2024, solvent on lamb leather
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm
&
The pig farmer had long since stopped believing in God, 2024, textile ink on lamb leather
(Australian automobile upholstery seconds), 23 x 30.6cm,
Homecoming Queen (Installation view #3)