stuart faulkner: painter plonker

the thing i love most about stuart faulkner’s paintings is the irrepressible optimism and joy in them. his delight is our delight. they cheer me up. no. i mean seriously, they actually change my mood. what a fantastically powerful and tangible talent he has. he is a sort of visual prozac. his massive popularity is no surprise, really, because in a way, we actually need him. we need to be delighted like this.

how is it that he is so great? how is it that four generations of my family love him so much? perhaps it’s because he is not only a kind cheeky friend who shows us a mirror of our own familiar and flawed behavior with a benevolent twinkle in his eye, but also a voyeur whose eavesdropping is quite deliciously embarrassing if you recognize yourself or your loved ones in his work.

I met stuart recently and i was very glad to of had that opportunity because so much of his own personality and attitude is contained in his work. when in his company you feel that misbehavior is imminent and i must admit that i did get a bit over giddy in anticipation. stuart is the real deal, he appears to have no pretensions whatsoever, no arty angst. he’s the sort of person you know you want to go out with for the evening. he’s friendly and warm but he’s also voraciously curious, on the lookout for anything unusual or saucy. I don’t think much escapes his attention, he’s a sort of thief really, stealing from our lives, but in a way we don’t mind because he treats his contraband with such celebratory panache.

it is so easy for snooty critics (the art world seems to be overcrowded with them) to overlook or dismiss his work, because a) he’s spectacularly prolific, so they aren’t convinced he is suffering enough to produce anything sublime and b) his work is so utterly enjoyable, so universally loved, therefore… how can that be right??!

I have identified so much with stuart faulkner’s work in the past that i have sort of decided that he is part of my family - part of a truly artistic brotherhood, like many admirers of his work, i feel a supremely personal connection with it.

Stuart faulkner is one of my all time favorite people, someone we should truly cherish. i’m all for instigating “stuart faulkner day” where we get to have a day off, get a gang of mates together, dress up for netball in burka’s and klansmen’s gowns - and go down to the beach to hang out with paul, hulk and terry ‘ogan - and watch as the tides rise around lovely tyrannosaurus rex’s!

bugger it i’m going to do it anyway….. coming? XX

- LLB

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