Johnny Romeo
THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO
New Paintings
Internationally acclaimed Australian Pop Artist Johnny Romeo makes his thunderous return to Sydney with his exhilarating new series, THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO. Coming off the back of a sell-out exhibition at the Australian Consulate-General in New York and rapturously received shows in Perth and Canberra, Australia’s King of Pop delivers a knockout body of works that raises the bar for Neo-Expressionist Pop on the global stage. THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO is an electrifying trip down the kaleidoscopic rabbit hole of Pop culture, where the exuberant kitschness of Pop is fused with the thrill of the Absurd to capture a world where the old order is dead, and the possibilities of the new are limitless.
Inspired by the restless energy and unbridled creative potential of New York at the end of the 1970s, the title THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO is a colourful celebration of new dawns. The end of disco for Romeo is not so much a literal period or musical style, but rather something symbolic of a proverbial changing of the guard – the end of the old and the birth of the new. There is a tantalising irreverence to Johnny Romeo’s latest paintings, a desire to push his Technicolour Pop visions into edgy new terrains that mirror the exhilarating lawlessness of punk and hip hop in their early days, as they emerged from the ashes of the discotheque. Brimming with an undeniable swagger, the series cheekily contorts familiar popular imagery into brash, refreshingly original compositions that envision a future of Pop culture drenched in brilliant Technicolour.
At the same time, many of the paintings in THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO reflect Johnny Romeo’s fascination with art history. Amidst the artist’s tongue-in-cheek renditions of icons such as Michael Jackson, Winston Churchill and KISS lays a cornucopia of references to major artists and historic art movements, ranging from Christian Orthodox hagiography, to Impressionism and Dadaism. Romeo’s visual sampling and remixing of works by art luminaries such as Paul Cézanne and René Magritte represents a thrilling new direction for the artist, as he daringly blurs the lines between ‘high brow’ and ‘low brow’ culture, and what is considered sacred and kitsch.
Surrealism, in particular, has been hugely influential in the development of the series. Romeo amps up the Absurdist bent of his works with gleeful abandon, transforming beloved world leaders into animals, sanctifying pop stars and even breaking through the visual fourth wall through the rap symbology of Kendrick Lamar. Throughout THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO, the psychotropic spirit of Surrealism is tempered with Romeo’s uncompromisingly vibrant take on Pop Art, resulting in some of his most visually arresting works to date. The artist seamlessly melds Dali-esque psychedelia with the seductive pin-up imagery of the late, great Pop provocateur Mel Ramos, highlighting the playful fluidity and inherent absurdity of Pop culture with his signature dose of visual bombast and razor sharp wit.
The series showcases Romeo’s ingenious ability to fuse eclectic musical influences into his work. Evoking the heady compositions of prog rock and the free-form looseness of improvisational jazz, the paintings in the series ebb and flow like tracks in a concept record, connected through a series of visual motifs and cheeky double-entendres. A master of creating visual hooks, Romeo also grounds his work with eye-popping colour arrangements and taut, rhythmic text passages that recall the invigorating rush of punk and the bone-rattling beats of hip hop as they soundtrack disco’s twilight. Balancing the tight sheen of popular music with the intuitive impulses of jazz, the artist has crafted his most confident and accomplished paintings yet.
THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO is a powerful celebration of new dawns rising from the ashes of the old world. Bursting with sumptuous explosions of colour, searing satire and a delightfully Absurdist edge, the series sees Australia’s leading Pop artist take his inimitable fusion of punk energy and Kitsch Pop slickness to soaring new heights as he ushers in the incendiary last days of disco.
Opening reception with Artist: Friday 7th December 2018 @ 6:30-8:00pm
Harvey Galleries, 842 Military Road, Mosman, NSW 2088, Australia.
Ph: +61 2 9968 2153
RSVP to attend the opening of Johnny Romeo’s THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO is essential.
RSVP to: rsvp@harveygalleries.com.au
Any enquires regarding Johnny Romeo’s THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO can be made directly through Harvey Galleries (admin@harveygalleries.com.au) or by calling the gallery on +61 2 9968 2153
Exhibition Dates: 7th December – 16th December 2018.
December 5, 2018