Cave Lady 1, 2012, by Lucas Grogan.
Source: Supplied
A SECOND artist has walked out on a gallery after refusing to be in the same stable as a non-Aboriginal artist who draws on indigenous themes in his work.
Australian-born Indian artist TextaQueen, 36, quit Melbourne's Gallerysmith two weeks ago after learning the gallery had signed Melbourne-based artist Lucas Grogan and was planning a group show featuring works by both of them at the end of the year.
TextaQueen says she was offended by how Grogan had referenced indigenous culture and art-making styles such as dot-painting in his previous work.
"It really personally affects me as a person of colour," she says.
The Australian revealed this week that Aboriginal artist Ryan Presley, 25, quit Brisbane's Jan Manton Art after it started representing Grogan, saying he was offended by Grogan's work. Presley had been represented by the gallery for 18 months.
Grogan's drawings, referencing bark painting styles, caused a stir when anonymous objections led to them being barred from the Sydney Art Fair in 2008.
TextaQueen, who uses felt-tip markers to make works about gender and cultural identity, first saw Grogan's work last year and thought it had been made by an indigenous person.
"It was embroidery but it looked like indigenous art to me," says TextaQueen, who is also represented by Sullivan and Strumpf in Sydney.
"I don't think he's entitled to use the kind of imagery he uses . . . I don't think it's his story to be telling and I think he's trading on controversy."
Gallerysmith director Marita Smith has received several letters of complaint from Aborigines objecting to Grogan's work since she signed him about six months ago.
"It comes from a small group of people who are quite determined to derail Grogan's practice," she says. "I'm not prepared to censor the work because of a minority group who are offended by Grogan's work."
She says Grogan has a unique voice and is "one of the most exciting artists of this century".
Grogan, 28, did not return calls yesterday.
But in a statement released by Gallerysmith he says: "I made some work that referenced Aboriginal painting because I realised there were some striking similarities between my mark making and bark painting. But my inspiration comes from a whole range of sources."
Fertility goddesses such as the Venus of Willendorf were the inspiration for Grogan's recent exhibition Cave Paintings at Gallerysmith. On Monday he told The Australian he was pursuing a new direction in his art that drew less on Aboriginal styles.
