ABOUT:  Steve Warburton - Artist     Steve Warburton is an artist currently working and exhibiting primarily in Melbourne, Australia. Since completing a Fine Arts degree at Monash University, Steve Warburton has exhibited widely in both group and solo exhibitions. His paintings are held in collections Australia-wide and internationally. [Click on EXHIBITIONS for Steve's C.V. and details of Past, Present and Planned exhibitions.] As an artist’s work is a reflection of his or her emotions, ideals, thoughts and influences, it is necessary to understand the importance the work plays in the artist’s life. My work is the direct result of things that I have born witness to, overheard in conversations, or dreamt. It reflects my right to express my thoughts, in a way I hope will be accessible to the viewer, both aesthetically and literally. My work can be seen as a convergence between all the intentions and incentives (conscious or sub-conscious) of ourselves - the collective, the individual - and our conduct. The catalyst is subtle, often overlooked; yet building up over time to inevitable cataclysm. Think of the introduction of rabbits and cane toads into Australia, DDT, the Greenhouse Effect - all examples of our being unable - or unwilling - to anticipate or suppose. Without developing a sensitivity to and awareness of these subtle changes, we will all in some way succumb to the dictates of the slow catastrophe, whether due to the closure of a personal relationship, tooth decay, disease, the destruction of one’s personal environment by pest infestation or a widespread disaster. We are building a “Wasteland” with our discards. A co-habitation – man with the jetsam of his creation. Since Slow Catastrophes occur at a snail’s pace, there is always hope for an ending other than fatal.   Read an excerpt from the March 2007, Whitehorse News** to learn what Councillor Bill Bowie, Co-Chairman of the Visual Arts Committee had to say about Steve Warburton’s painting "Revolution", which was added to the Council's collection . ** Excerpt from page four of the March 2007, Whitehorse Shire Council newsletter reproduced with the kind permission of the Whitehorse Shire Council - The complete PDF document may be found at  Whitehorse NEWS March 2007 . Life Drawing Life Drawing is a special addition to my art making. It helps me observe the world by keeping my ‘eye’ in practice. It is relaxing yet challenges my abilities. I enjoy the freshness of the medium. The looseness is a pleasant respite from the exactness I feel I need to achieve in my paintings.   Tilting The Herd - 2007 Pivotal Galleries (Click Here to Take a look) Tilting The Herd sees the themes developed in "If Metal Had Memory" and "Wasteland" become even more evocative and dramatic. The theme of the powerful subjugating the meek provides an intense depth to Steve's work. Tilting The Herd is a stirring and thought provoking series of works, with some highlights including "Assimilation", "Your gods can come too" and "Curious". - Peter (Webmaster)   If Metal Had Memory - 2006 Pivotal Galleries (Click Here to Take a look) If Metal Had Memory expands on the successful Wasteland theme (of 2005) and continues to refine the story of the often exaggerated relationship between man and machine ... and the ultimate obsolescence of all man-made devices. Steves new paintings feature elaborate scenes that tell haunting stories of humanity being dwarfed by the mechanical artefacts, relics and junk of mankind's own creation. If metal had memory - what stories could it tell? - Peter (Webmaster)   Wasteland Exhibition - 2005 Pivotal Galleries (Click Here to Take a look) "Steve has created eerie visions of immense and monumental pieces of machinery. The mechanical forms are outsized and removed from their context (what colossal machine did they help drive?) they carry a sense of both latent strength and power and also the futility of redundant purpose . Like magnificent ruins of a once great civilisation they rust in the Dockland waters dwarfing the greyly anonymous onlookers. There is a tension inherent in these monoliths balanced on pontoons or jutting silently from waters and darkening the skyline. The forthcoming exhibition promises to be powerful and thought provoking. The following is a selection of work to be exhibited. there will be nine large canvases and a series of bold, small studies of disembodied mechanical devices." - Tamsin Davidson   Director, Pivotal Galleries