Neon + Noir: Jim Thalassoudis and Dianne Gall Exhibition
Welcome to the world of hyperrealism. Bluethumb is proud to present Neon + Noir, an exhibition at Bluethumb Goodwood (Adelaide) showcasing the most recognisable visual themes by partners in life and art, Jim Thalassoudis and Dianne Gall. Adelaide-based and internationally collected, both Jim and Dianne garner a cult following of fans hungry to snap up their latest works before brush first strikes canvas.
Exclusive to Bluethumb, Neon + Noir marks an opportunity – to purchase archival quality, limited edition prints by Jim and Dianne without the waitlists in our Adelaide gallery from November 3rd to 24th. View all Neon + Noir available works here or grab your free tickets to the exhibition opening on Thursday November 3rd (6-8pm).
Little Audrey Skipping Over Melbourne by Jim Thalassoudis.
Power Couple: Jim Thalassoudis and Dianne Gall
Meeting at art school nearly 40 years ago, Jim and Dianne have shared a studio ever since. The duo currently work from a large 300sqm warehouse space in Adelaide, spending 6-7 days a week inside the studio. “We talk about art every day, live and breathe art, so it’s impossible to not influence each other,” Jim explains. Whilst the pair continually influence each other, they manage to “…maintain fiercely independent artistic practices.”
The Future Is Not Ours by Dianne Gall.
Dianne explains, “…having a partner who is also an artist gives rise to daily debates about art, materials, logistics and just esoteric murmurings of future art projects and journeys to take together for photoshoots and gathering information. We are always sparking ideas and sounding each other out, as what seems like a good idea might not be on second thought, so we often have spirited debates on content and future paths.”
Artistic Journey
Both Jim and Dianne committed to becoming artists at a young age. For Jim, his desire to become an artist started at the precocious age of 4, on the day of a memorably sweltering visit to a staged family photography shoot. In fact, there’s a photo of a bow tied young Jim to prove it! “It was a stinking hot day made worse by the lights and all I was thinking was ‘get me out of here, out of these stifling clothes and let me get dirty drawing’.”
Jim’s studio with works in progress.
Dianne grew up in an artistic household. With both parents working in television, she was always surrounded by music and art. Dianne explains, “I started creating as soon as I could hold a pencil… I found myself occupying my days with drawing and watercolours, immersed in the two-dimensional world.”
What I Dreamed by Dianne Gall.
After school, Jim and Dianne both attended the South Australian School of Art, where they met and mastered their trades. Following his studies, Jim held his first solo exhibition only 9 months after completing his degree. His work was swiftly included in group exhibitions at the Art Gallery of South Australia, Contemporary Art Centre of SA and the Experimental Art Foundation. At the age of 60, Jim has now held 45 solo exhibitions and been included in over 300 group exhibitions. Whilst he’s had plenty of lived experience, Jim still feels “young at heart and creatively courageous.”
Regal by Jim Thalassoudis.
Having held over 20 solo exhibition and dozens of group shows, Dianne’s artworks remain widely exhibited and held across Australia and internationally. She maintains a particular popularity in the USA, including a place in the prestigious Bennett Art Collection of realist paintings of women by women artists.
Hyperrealism
As evidenced by their impressive and extensive art portfolios, both Jim and Dianne work in a hyperrealistic style. Their art reveals the world around us in such fine detail it’s difficult to differentiate between a painting or photograph. Jim argues realism is the most pervasive art form in the history of Western Art. “It is eternal, when other art movements come and go.”
Joyful Reminiscence by Dianne Gall.
The form of hyperrealistic art Jim creates is not merely a photograph, but a reconstruction of reality, a way of making art more real than real. Jim’s motto for his art practice is, “less is more, quality is all”.
Relishing the challenge of creating with meticulous care and detail, like Jim, Dianne has slowly refined her practice as a hyperrealist oil painter over several decades. But it remains a journey of continual improvement, always pushing the frontier on what she can achieve.
Art Process
Jim explains, “…my process is laborious and time consuming, let alone the time mulling over ideas and images before I begin painting. A perfect example is the painting Little Audrey Skipping over Melbourne:
“I had the idea to paint the Skipping Girl from an angle that made her appear to be skipping across the Melbourne skyline. It took 6 months to get permission to access the rooftop of the nearby art deco building. A drive from Adelaide to Melbourne for the single evening allocated for photography. Several hundred photos taken making sure I had every detail, angle, as well as capturing the stages of the skipping cycle. The lights in the cityscape had to be captured much later than when the sign was photographed. Then came the arduous task of manipulating the images, adjusting the sign and the glow of the neon look right. The sky came from photos taken a year earlier from rural SA.”
Jim varnishing his painting, Little Audrey Skipping Over Melbourne.
Dianne’s paintings follow a similar process of exhaustive planning, photographing, and creating. She explains, “often as much time is spent before brush hits the canvas as it takes to meticulously paint it. As ideas start to gel, locations for photo shoots are scouted, models organised, dresses sourced – many from Vintage sellers in the USA – and sometimes additional props are purchased. During photo shoots I direct, Jim is the cameraman and usually two lighting assistants are also needed.”
It’s a cinematic production, reflective of Dianne’s cinematic style. A carefully orchestrated vision from which a single image will emerge through compositing the “several hundred photos taken to work with.”
“Each image has to be drawn in great detail onto the canvas, that process alone can take a considerable amount of time before oil painting begins. By now 3-6 months have passed and the painting is ready to start… And give or take 12-18 months to complete.”
Augmented Reality Art
As part of his Crypto Hearts/Love Art series, Jim has created four original digital heart prints using Augmented Reality (AR) technology, and exclusive to Bluethumb. The series explores the metaphor of a heart, of love, of the luminous beauty of the imagined world. The available prints are Eternity, The Dreamers, Psychedelic Psycho Love and Checkered Heart.
The AR prints come alive when viewed through a smart phone or a tablet via the free Artivive app. Each print is a limited edition of 10, so get in quick!
Eternity by Jim Thalassoudis.
Neon + Noir will be showing in our Adelaide gallery from November 3rd to 24th at 72A King William Rd, Goodwood. Get your free tickets to the Neon + Noir opening night here.
