Joella Wheatley: Forgotten Lines

About

aspex welcomes back the winner of the 2012 Platform Graduate Award for a solo exhibition of her intricate, intense, mysterious tension filled drawings and paintings. In Forgotten Lines Joella Wheatley reveals the processes, complexities and voids of solitude through perspective projection, creating secluded interior and exterior spaces. Joella constructs worlds containing isolated objects, which sit static and unassuming. However, these forms are not merely hollow geometric shapes. They embody an enclosed space and become living things and the subjects of her work. The intention behind using these seemingly random objects and shapes is to allow the viewer to detach themselves from the concept of normality, to question their reason for being and allow the forms to settle in a place and symbolize the notion of isolation. Her paintings begin with a study of the dynamics of an empty space, which tell a story of power, solitude and emptiness. The ability to calculate, measure and position assists human understanding of what a line can represent. In her work, Joella pays great attention to the structure of lines, which create the inhabitable arenas. The contents of each space suggest, but never confirm, that activity has occurred. Joella employs a range of media: acrylic, pen and oil, each being intrinsic to the final piece. The layering of materials adds depth and complexity to her work. In Forgotten Lines, she has explored a variation of formats, from hexagons to octagons and circles. Painting on these shapes can be more challenging, but has the advantage of allowing the viewer to observe the space without feeling constrained or restricted.