Material world: Dale Frank latest explorations in paint, resin and fire foam
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

January is usually a relatively quiet month for art in Hong Kong but not so at Pearl Lam’s eponymous Pedder Street gallery where the local gallerist is showing a solo exhibition of 16 works by artist Dale Frank.
One of the Australia’s most successful international artists, Frank is renowned for his manipulation of wildly different materials, pouring, melting and folding paint, chemicals, varnish, and resin to create intricate kaleidoscopic abstract images that are part painting, collage and sculpture. ‘It is not important to me if the image is flat or extends so far out from the wall that it touches the floor', he says. Indeed, in the past some of his works have literally slowly slipped off the canvas to create hypnotic stalactite-like goopy forms.
’His homeless eyes left you legless’, 2016, colour resin in liquid glass on Perspex
One of the most intriguing transformative pieces on show is, He had the personality of duck fat, comprising a large Perspex base upon which the artist has sculptured compression foam into a moon surface-like landscape before adding a layer of plutonium so that it glows an eerie green in the dark. The artist says he always adds the title after the works leave the studio. ‘I write a story and then move the lines and text around, breaking it up. I then divide it up according to the number of paintings,’ he explains.
’The English have a way with Trifle’, 2016, oxygenated fire retardant foam in liquid glass on Perspex
Sometimes, however, the seemingly random name fits the image surprisingly well, as with The English have a way with Trifle (above), where oxygenated fire retardant foam on liquid glass interacts with oxygen to create a surreal pink and burnished gold landscape.
All the works were created during 2016, so even familiar-looking pieces reflect Frank’s newest explorations. For instance, his trademark colour resin swirls are now layered on reflective liquid glass creating a mirrored effect that reflects the image of the viewer. ‘Everyone wants to be the centre of the world at the moment so why not make them the centre of the art?’ Frank asks with a laugh.
Filling his hollow hours with platitudes, 2016
From left, The English have a way with trifle, 2016; and He ended up running a wallpaper shop just outside, 2016
Grasshoppers as a term of affection, 2016
His death constantly nibbled at his future promise, 2016; and A face like two aged swollen testicles, 2016
INFORMATION
’Dale Frank’ is on view until 9 March. For more information, visit the Pearl Lam Galleries website (opens in new tab)
ADDRESS
Pearl Lam Galleries
601-605 Hong Kong Pedder Building
12 Pedder Street
Central
VIEW GOOGLE MAPS (opens in new tab)
-
Giorgetti Spiga – The Place opens in Milan’s fashion quarter
The new Giorgetti Spiga – The Place transforms a 17th-century palazzo in Milan, showcasing the furniture company's full offering over four floors
By Maria Cristina Didero • Published
-
This futuristic ski house is born of its sloped locale
A ski house with a contemporary twist, this is House at 9,000ft by MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple in the Intermountain Region of Western USA
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
‘Crown to Couture’: Kensington Palace unveils its largest ever exhibition
‘Crown to Couture’ at Kensington Palace, London, promises a dazzling delve into royal-court and red-carpet jewellery and dressing (5 April – 29 October 2023). Its curators tell us more
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
The best London art exhibitions: a guide for March 2023
Your guide to the best London art exhibitions, and those around the UK in March 2023, as chosen by the Wallpaper* arts desk
By Harriet Lloyd Smith • Published
-
Gavin Turk: ‘My art is always other people's art’
We interview British artist Gavin Turk, whose show ‘Kerze’ (candle) at Ben Brown Fine Arts is an ode to Gerhard Richter’s candle painting, with an uncanny twist
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
An art history of Château Mouton Rothschild wine labels, from Lucian Freud and Niki de Saint Phalle to Peter Doig
We take a closer look at Château Mouton Rothschild’s 2020 vintage label designed by artist Peter Doig and look back on the house’s fruitful history of artist collaborations
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Last updated
-
Yayoi Kusama interview: ‘Painting helps me to keep away thoughts of death’
We interview legendary Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, who discusses her major retrospective at M+, Hong Kong, the ‘power of art’, and her desire, at 93 years old, ‘to create ever more original works’
By Megan C Hills • Last updated
-
Faith Ringgold on capturing the complexity of the American experience: ‘It takes courage to be free’
We interview Faith Ringgold, whose major retrospective exhibition ‘American People’ runs until 27 November at the de Young Musuem, San Francisco
By Aindrea Emelife • Published
-
Rashid Johnson in Menorca: a journey through migration, longing and togetherness
We visited Rashid Johnson’s Brooklyn studio ahead of the artist’s show at Hauser & Wirth Menorca, which contemplates drift – physical and emotional
By Osman Can Yerebakan • Published
-
Remembering Pierre Soulages (1919-2022), a pioneer of post-war abstraction
Pierre Soulages, the pioneering French printmaker, sculptor and ‘painter of black’, has died aged 102
By Diane Theunissen • Published
-
Artist Karin Schaefer blends divine order and queer joy with hard-edged geometry
We explore the life, work and Massachusetts studio of American artist Karin Schaefer, ahead of her solo show ‘Continuum’ at Sears Peyton Gallery, New York
By Michael Reynolds • Last updated