Stieg Pers­son

Born Mel­bourne, Aus­tralia 1959

Lives and works in Melbourne

Stieg Pers­son has been exhibit­ing for over three decades with a prac­tice that inves­ti­gates the pos­si­bil­i­ties of what paint­ing can do. His ear­ly paint­ings are char­ac­terised by a mono­chro­mat­ic palette and flow of mark from arabesque to cal­lig­ra­phy and text, while lat­er works have leaned more towards the abstract­ed. Pers­son also incor­po­rates appro­pri­at­ed imagery, Roco­co influ­ences and graf­fi­ti that he doc­u­ments in Mel­bourne. In meld­ing these ele­ments, Pers­son inves­ti­gates the free inter­play between abstrac­tion and figuration.

Recent exhi­bi­tions include Stieg Pers­son: Poly­phon­ic, Ian Pot­ter Muse­um of Art (2018); The Nation­al: New Aus­tralian Art, Muse­um of Con­tem­po­rary Art (2017); Paint­ing, More Paint­ing – Chap­ter 2, Aus­tralian Cen­tre for Con­tem­po­rary Art (2016); The Frag­o­nard Room, Anna Schwartz Gallery (2014); The­atre of the World, La Mai­son Rouge, Paris (2013); Mel­bourne Now, Nation­al Gallery of Vic­to­ria (2013); Mix Tape 1980s Appro­pri­a­tion, Sub­cul­ture, Crit­i­cal Style, Nation­al Gallery of Vic­to­ria (2013).

Persson’s work is rep­re­sent­ed in all major Aus­tralian col­lec­tions includ­ing the Nation­al Gallery of Vic­to­ria, Mel­bourne; Art Gallery of New South Wales, Syd­ney; Art Gallery of West­ern Aus­tralia, Perth; Nation­al Gallery of Aus­tralia, Can­ber­ra; Auck­land Art Gallery, Auck­land and Met­ro­pol­i­tan Muse­um of Art, New York. In 2003 he won the inau­gur­al Arthur Guy Memo­r­i­al Paint­ing Prize, Bendi­go Art Gallery, Bendigo.

CV

Bib­li­og­ra­phy