Aaron Fell-Fracasso
Melbourne Art Fair, 20 - 23 February 2025
Booth L8, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre
Aaron Fell-Fracasso
oil, sand, acrylic and fibreglass on polycotton
250 x 170 cm
AUD 25,000
Aaron Fell-Fracasso uses textural and tactile mark-making to create immersive abstract paintings. His process involves rendering, scraping, and concealing layers of paint, revealing complex sensory surfaces that conjure childhood memories and non-linear narratives. In his paintings, Fell-Fracasso explores the interplay between purposeful and playful expressions, employing colour blocking, pattern generation, and direct gestures to guide the viewer across, around, and beyond the picture plane.
In this body of work, the artist’s sensory urge to create tension through contrasting marks and surfaces is palpable. Glossy skins of paint glide across the canvas to meet crusted over excavated aspects of sandy oil-paint remains. Whimsical pigtail motifs sit alongside formal abstract objectives and offer new ways to engage with the contradictions of composition.
The interweaving of personal histories and references to family create visceral moments in Fell-Fracasso's work. The practice of provoking and allowing these moments to occur in his studio has opened up new possibilities in his work, merging the layers of life's complexities with the process of making, without the suspicion of loading meaning into the painting.
In the painting Black Stack, a powerful tower of stacked ribbons trails up, down, and across the left side of the canvas. Lines piped in deep brown and red oxides are smoothed over at different frequencies, vibrating with luster against the gritty undersurface. The artist is reminded of patterns of the Jousta, a Lithuanian woven tie sash he encountered in his family home and on travels back to reconnect with family in Lithuania.
The painting Opa's Annexe invites the viewer into a central cross-section void, where it seems a loss remains. Large portions in three corners of the painting are filled with the artist's recurring textile-esque motif. Vivid orange, apricot, and black oil paint sheen atop a deep rust clay background. The top right corner is spared, only to emerge as a softened breath with fishnet-like material embedding the chalky grounds. In sharing about this work, Fell-Fracasso recalls a memory of his maternal grandfather's caravan annexe; "the fluoro green name tag in the caravan window read, Ian Hedger. He'd assumed his first wife's maiden name to assimilate. My grandfather's birth name was Ervinas Endrulis, but around the caravan park, boat ramp, and pub he was known as Box Head." Much like his memory of his grandfather, who he refers to as an enigma, Opa’s Annexe nourishes the viewer with just enough freedom and form to encourage their own journey.
Aaron Fell-Fracasso
Chappy's Spot at Flat Rock, 2024
oil, sand and plastic net on polycotton
81.5 x 71.5 cm
AUD 4,000
Aaron Fell-Fracasso
Playing Cards with Little May, 2024
oil, sand and plastic net on polycotton
81.5 x 71.5 cm
AUD 4,000
Aaron Fell-Fracasso
When I Look at You I Think of You, 2025
oil and sand on polycotton
81.5 x 71.5 cm
AUD 6,000
Aaron Fell-Fracasso
Poached Nectarines, 2024
oil and sand on polycotton
81.5 x 71.5 cm
AUD 4,000
Upon viewing Fell-Fracasso's paintings, it is evident that the application and materiality of his work are rooted in collage, an approach the artist has worked with for many years. Thick worm-like forms are carefully assembled while semi-dried flicks of paint are flung across the canvas. Removed paint skins, along with miscellaneous material studio scraps, are reattached to paintings, guiding a piece-by-piece resolution. Fell-Fracasso's paintings prove that he is forever searching for the perfect moment to complete a painting.
Aaron Fell-Fracasso lives and works in Dharawal/Wollongong, NSW. He holds a Bachelor of Visual Arts from the University of Wollongong and an Advanced Diploma of Fine Arts from West Wollongong TAFE. He has been a finalist in numerous art prizes and his work is included in the collections of the University of Wollongong and Macquarie University, as well as in private collections.