The Container

Even a man who is pure in heart
And says his prayers by night
May become a wolf when the wolfsbane blooms
And the autumn moon is bright

From The Wolf Man (1941), Universal Studios

Even a man who is pure in heart may be tempted to be subverted by Jack McLean’s new drawings. Wittingly drawn into a morbid liquid-like universe, where a stiletto-heeled man is metamorphosed into a cat, and a boy with popping eyes is transformed into a skinny-legged bearded man. It is easy to get lost in these new series of drawings by McLean, to slowly delve into his surreal world, characterized by his dry humour and witty social commentary, in compositions that bring to mind a psychedelic drug experience, where everything makes sense despite being terribly bizarre and nonsensical.

Unlike McLean’s vast narrative large-scale landscape drawings, which are highly figurative and epic, these smaller drawings, on paper and canvas, are abstract in their nature, in spite of the many recognisable figures and objects. The biomorphic disposition of the characters, and the fantasy-like imagery, brings to mind the works of the abstract surrealists during late Surrealism, such as Juan Miro and Jean Arp. The drawings seem to suggest a state of hallucination, provoked by memory or a subjective perception, where McLean reigns and is the undisputed sovereign. Whatever the source is, his conception is assembled by an infallible sense of design, of space and interval, into a strange formal harmony. McLean also borrows, inadvertently, the abstract surrealists’ techniques, such as automatism and stream of consciousness, to produce these fantastic environments, devoid of rules and structure.

The drawings possess complex compositions that are possible to view from any direction and a liquid-like fluidity. Nightmare-ish imagery is adjacent to quirky and silly characters, pouring into each other, to form little universes that seem infinite, and that extend well beyond the borders of the paper or canvas. The appearance of the drawings is bold, almost childlike, with a strong visual play and optical illusions—every negative space turns into positive, every nook in the surface is a detail for another character if the drawing is viewed from a different orientation. The drawings are all monochromatic, mostly black on white, but some, shaded in bold childlike colours, enhancing the absurdity of the characters.

Even a man who is pure in heart is Jack McLean’s third solo show at The Container, and marks a new evolution of his well-received large canvases from 2010-2014. The new drawings, nevertheless, still feature some of McLean’s familiar and recognisable old characters and themes—overweight and grotesque women in bikinis, cross-dressers, deformed children, and bald-headed men—dressed in new compositions and a new “feel”, but undoubtedly distinguished as his work. Accompanying the drawings, is also a sculptural piece, a large translucent vinyl sheet that divides the exhibition space in two and showcases found objects that are represented in the drawings. The sculpture adds playfulness and colour to the exhibited drawings and enriches the viewing experience of the spectators.

As typified by his 30 years career as an artist, these new drawings and sculptural piece draw different elements and themes from McLean’s career, weaving together old and new ideas, familiar characters and sites, and recall some of his performance art personas—all wrapped up in a new context and fresh compositions. Even a man who is pure in heart also features a new performance art act, showcasing his performance character Dr. Donald Death in a narrative performance that contextualises the exhibition and will be performed at The Container during the opening reception for the exhibition.