Master draughtsman Matt Coyle is well known for his skilful use of black pen on white paper. In 2014 Coyle has introduced a bold new element into his work; colour. With this turn his subjects take on a new charge, rich and seductive, yet still hauntingly sinister. In Warm Blooded Playthings, Coyle presents a new series of meticulous drawings that display his flirtation with tinting and shading, with hues and saturation. The result is a heightened sense of drama, where hyper-real and menacing subjects bestow upon the work a palpable tension.As Matthew Kirkcaldie (Senior Lecturer in Neuroscience at the University of Tasmania) has aptly noted ‘through Coyle’s eyes, the world becomes a richer, more sinister place. These days we are deadened by imagery, films swamped by a tide of CGI, the endless styling of the trivial, viewing kids’ parties and live bands through our phone screens. Coyle gives us back the little, the simple, the quotidian – and suddenly everything around us crackles with significance.’
Coyle has exhibited in Melbourne, Hobart and Sydney as well as appearing in group shows internationally including The Hong Kong Art Fair and Korean International Art Fair (KIAF) with Anna Pappas Gallery. Matt Coyle is represented by Anna Pappas Gallery and Bett Gallery, Hobart.
