Leon Karla

Fairfield City Museum and Gallery
Histories, Memories, Other Territories| 7 July - 19 August 2007

Nationality for me is somewhat a paradox. Neither of my parents who migrated to Australia (my mother from New Zealand and my father from Lithuania) had particularly fond connections with their countries of birth. If anything, an effort was made to deny any cultural memories and eliminate their heritage.

Japan, Switzerland, Kenya and Brazil are the countries where I spent most of my teenage years and whose diverse and unique cultures had a strong influence on me, shaping me into a truly global person. Returning to Australia, my affiliation with Aussie bush culture, its colours, light, sounds, smells and animals have induced my rather neutral and undefined cultural perspective.

To some extent, most of my art reflects universal cultural influences through juxtaposed representations of domestic narratives with symbols of popular culture: Aussie bush, corrugated iron, references from art history, bonsai trees, rock’n’roll, rust and the rustic, comic books…

Am I more fortunate or less because I live in a cultural no man’s land and does this makes me a more global citizen?