Art News

Praise the Lord

A new exhibition of renaissance style paintings by North Lismore artist Damien Cox, entitled Lord Pluto's Private Collection, is now on show at the Lismore Regional Art Gallery.

Creating the works in total secrecy over the last 12 months, Lord Pluto's Private Collection features a series of acrylic paintings that pay homage to three famous renaissance artists - Raphael, Caravaggio and Bronzini.

Asked about the significance of Lord Pluto in the title of the exhibition, Damien revealed the entire body of work is based purely on fantasy.

"I've always dreamed of having a patron for my work but I couldn't find one so I invented one - Lord Pluto, the lead guitarist of a Swedish death metal band," Damien said. "He loves perverted renaissance paintings and he asked me back stage in Amsterdam after a concert if I could make these paintings for his palace in Nimbin. In doing so I have had to rediscover the lost secrets of renaissance painting, which has taken months of research and even a journey into the Underworld. After a year's hard work I have finished the collection and Lord Pluto is overwhelmed by my creations, especially the x-rated ones."

Despite the ambiguous nature of the exhibition, the technical quality of the work is outstanding and the result is a powerful and stunning collection of modern art.

Lord Pluto's Private Collection is on show until May 29.