For over thirty years Dale Frank has experimented with materials; oil paint, hubcaps, enamel, graphite, fibreglass and disco balls are just some of the elements that have appeared in his work. For the last decade, varnish has monopolised his attention. The maturity of this obsession is palpable in WACKY DUCK FLUFFY TOM.

Exhibition Dates: 9 September – 1 October 2011

For over thirty years Dale Frank has experimented with materials; oil paint, hubcaps, enamel, graphite, fibreglass and disco balls are just some of the elements that have appeared in his work. For the last decade, varnish has monopolised his attention. The maturity of this obsession is palpable in WACKY DUCK FLUFFY TOM. It is evident in the delicate marbling, the broad bands of sweeping colour, the mounds of hardened varnish, and, perhaps most importantly, in the ease of transition between these elements.

Dale Frank is one of Australia’s foremost contemporary painters. His career spans over thirty years. In 1983, he was included in the exhibition ‘Panorama della post - critica: critica ed arte at the Museo Palazzo Lanfranchi in Pisa along with Thomas Lawson and Anselm Kiefer (curated by Helena Kontova)’. In 1984 he was included in the Aperto section of the Venice Biennale. Returning to Australia, in 1990 he was included in the 8th Biennale of Sydney (curated by Rene Block). A major solo retrospective of his work was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney in 2000. Frank was included in the survey exhibition, ‘Contemporary Australia: Optimism’ at the Queensland Art Gallery / Gallery of Modern Art in 2008. Frank was selected for the 2010 Biennale of Sydney ‘The Beauty of Distance, Songs of Survival in a Precarious Age’, curated by David Elliott. Dale Frank has recently completed a major public art commission at 123 Albert Street, Brisbane. His paintings are held in every major public collection in Australia and in numerous private and corporate collections in Australia, Europe and the U.S. In 2005 Frank won The Arthur Guy Memorial Painting Prize at the Bendigo Art Gallery, Victoria. A major new monograph on Frank’s work ‘So Far: the Art of Dale Frank 2005-1980’ was published in 2007. Dale Frank has been exhibiting with Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery since 1982.

Hide Exhibition Text

Dale Frank Echium Wildprettii Lucky Tom, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
Echium Wildprettii Lucky Tom, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank Albizia Julibrissin Wacky Fluffy, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
Albizia Julibrissin Wacky Fluffy, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank The panes of the badly hung windows rattled with the wind, not constantly, but a regular loud dull reminder, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
The panes of the badly hung windows rattled with the wind, not constantly, but a regular loud dull reminder, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank Brugmansia Sanguinea Bent Witch, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
Brugmansia Sanguinea Bent Witch, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank The repeated caller never left her name, saying just that she was under supervision for training purposes, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
The repeated caller never left her name, saying just that she was under supervision for training purposes, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank No matter how little he ate he always remained persistently bloated., 2010; varnish on canvas; 200 x 260 cm; enquire
No matter how little he ate he always remained persistently bloated., 2010
varnish on canvas
200 x 260 cm
Dale Frank Cercis Candensis Flame Fanny, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
Cercis Candensis Flame Fanny, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Cussonia Spicata Steven Stroke, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
Cussonia Spicata Steven Stroke, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Erythrina Caffra Three Legs, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
Erythrina Caffra Three Legs, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Isoplexis Canariensis Love Armada, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
Isoplexis Canariensis Love Armada, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank He would always hit on the other young men only after making them share his so called special imported Jamaican marijuana, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
He would always hit on the other young men only after making them share his so called special imported Jamaican marijuana, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank He was able to speak and I had listened to him speak for over two hours on the importance and intricacies of Bowie's Low, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
He was able to speak and I had listened to him speak for over two hours on the importance and intricacies of Bowie's Low, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank His chest had sagged over the intervening thirty years to become a twenty year woman?s boobs and the increasing size of his nipples did nothing to alleviate my being taken aback, 2011; varnish on canvas; 200 x 200 cm; enquire
His chest had sagged over the intervening thirty years to become a twenty year woman?s boobs and the increasing size of his nipples did nothing to alleviate my being taken aback, 2011
varnish on canvas
200 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Cussonia Paniculata Rusty Nail, 2011; varnish on canvas; 180 x 180 cm; enquire
Cussonia Paniculata Rusty Nail, 2011
varnish on canvas
180 x 180 cm
Dale Frank Cedrus Atlantica Flavored Fuss, 2011; varnish on canvas; 180 x 180 cm; enquire
Cedrus Atlantica Flavored Fuss, 2011
varnish on canvas
180 x 180 cm
Dale Frank Cedrus Libani Beauty Butt, 2011; varnish on canvas; 180 x 180 cm; enquire
Cedrus Libani Beauty Butt, 2011
varnish on canvas
180 x 180 cm
Dale Frank Araucaria Augustifolia Tobaccy Tony, 2011; varnish on canvas; 180 x 180 cm; enquire
Araucaria Augustifolia Tobaccy Tony, 2011
varnish on canvas
180 x 180 cm
Dale Frank Quercus Canariensis Keyhole Quentin, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 200 cm; enquire
Quercus Canariensis Keyhole Quentin, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Araucaria Bidwillii Dodgy Dog, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 200 cm; enquire
Araucaria Bidwillii Dodgy Dog, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 200 cm
Dale Frank Dracunculus Vulgaris Vocal Uterus, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 120 cm; enquire
Dracunculus Vulgaris Vocal Uterus, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 120 cm
Dale Frank Ficus Macrophylla Head High, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 120 cm; enquire
Ficus Macrophylla Head High, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 120 cm
Dale Frank Whilst he was only 15, he took his coffee with three teaspoons of Nescafe and three teaspoons of sugar, no milk, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 120 cm; enquire
Whilst he was only 15, he took his coffee with three teaspoons of Nescafe and three teaspoons of sugar, no milk, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 120 cm
Dale Frank Pinus Pinea Fluffy Scaffold, 2011; varnish on canvas; 160 x 120 cm; enquire
Pinus Pinea Fluffy Scaffold, 2011
varnish on canvas
160 x 120 cm