Warp of Vices – Nick Harte
In Warp of Vices Nick Harte explores ‘the complexities of life in all their confused, multilayered majesty or horror.’ His paintings on found record covers feature textured, scarred surfaces which conceal the original imagery of the covers. Harte’s instinctual application of paint is filtered through the life of the artist, so becoming a reflection of himself and the world that he consumes.
The distressed quality of the works contains both visual beauty and physical turmoil. Following hospitalisation Harte’s work focuses on the body in its fragile state. His corporeal palette is derived from the colour and texture of flesh, hair and the dark green bile he emitted from the medical treatment. The distressed surfaces created through an intuitive and experimental application of paint echo the bodily ‘warp’ experienced by the artist. This, projected through his interests in music, film, materiality and abstract mark making creates this series of engrossing artworks.
