MATT COYLE’S YOU & ME DAY
“There is something about the movement and energy that lines can generate,” says illustration artist Matt Coyle. “I’ve always found that compelling.”
Coyle opens a new show at James Dorahy Project Space next week, which will feature original drawings in felt tip pen. “I’ve been using the same brand of pens for about 20 years,” Coyle remarks, who was – forgive the pun – drawn to illustration after commencing a weekly comic series for Sydney University’s Honi Soit while completing a painting degree.
“But it wasn’t the comic medium I fell in love with, rather the graphic qualities that can be achieved using felt tip pens on paper.”
Coyle draws his inspiration for both the show and his series of graphic novels from the minutiae of his daily life. “Mostly simple things like light and everyday objects. I try to just let ideas happen rather than go looking for things to draw. And as my work takes so long to produce I have a lot of thinking time up my sleeve between pieces.”
The painstaking line drawings evidence Coyle’s considerable technical skill and talent for casting a dramatic light on the everyday. “I’ve been looking at dirt and twigs and rubbish quite a bit lately as they lend themselves very well to the medium I think. Inspiration can just come from seeing a pile of dirt at night under lights and you’ll think, ‘Hey that would make a great drawing.’” The You & Me Day show will showcase Coyle’s latest work, which, “speaks of old stories of sibling connection, cruelty, play and fatherhood.”
Mar 27-Apr 22, James Dorahy Project Space, 4/111 Macleay St, Potts Point, 9358 2585, jamesdorahy.com.au
