The current vibrantly colourful exhibition at the Traffic Jam Galleries features works by two artists– Jenny Green and Rebecca Pierce. The opening was crammed with people and many works have already sold.

Rebecca Pierce’s work is mostly enticingly thickly textured and explosively colourful. Her section of the exhibition is entitled Split Persona – Poles Apart. As Pierce says “There is pleasure derived from creating the tension between a marriage of highly textured impasto musings derived from nature, with objects of the everyday variety rendered in a hyper realistic fashion. Thus the title SPLIT PERSONA—POLES APART, cohabitating as one but not always an easy or straightforward union”.

Some of the flower ‘squares’ are on the reception desk. Litres and litres of paint are used to create the works in swirling impasto, which can weigh up to 27 kg and take up to six weeks to dry. Whilst there are bright overtones, if you observe closely there are hidden, somewhat sinister elements with knives, spanners, hammers lurking. (eg Screw It, in pale blues and purples, with a screwdriver). Blow That Cone, a colourful large vertical work, erupts from the canvas, leaves – looking like green pieces of fruit– falling.

There is an exciting use of an antique mannequin in The Busty One, with bursting flowers on the bust. The mannequin looks like a water maiden in blues, greens and purples.

The Imperious/Can’t Choose and Pull Your Head In all feature Pierce’s signature circular face and large eyes. They have flowers in their hair and are enchanting. Vivid ‘portraits’ of flowers as seen in Daisy 1 and Daisy 2 are on single colour backgrounds.

Jenny Green’s current work, a series entitled Let’s Dance evoke a form of synaesthesia, where swirling ,swooping steel and bronze turns to music and song … with lines, curves and pods forging harmonies and rhythms. Green’s work was featured in the North Sydney Art Prize. Her rather abstract new works explore the interplay of empty space with solid substance, movement with emotion.

The various series of works included, made of steel, are given musical names such as Riff, Podcast,  Glissando… The ‘Lyrical’ series is in various sizes. They are full of dynamic energy and rhythm. Mostly they are in black lines (sort of like a music clef) straight or curved with coloured dots for emphasis but also a few are vibrantly in red lines .The ‘Riff’ series hangs vertically on the wall. Assorted bronze violins melt and twist in the Stradi-Various part of the show and the Podcasts exuberantly yet elegantly burst open.

Summing up, this exhibition showcases two contrasting yet complementary artists whose work is exuberantly stimulating and challenging.

The current exhibition by Jenny Green and Rebecca Pierce runs at the Traffic Jam Galleries until the 28th March.