JPS Gallery is pleased to present Mellow doubt, British contemporary artist Joe Cheetham’s first solo show in Asia, which will be exhibited at our Hong Kong gallery space. Cheetham is widely known across Europe for his exceptional ability to capture the collective jubilance of club culture through his unique depiction of cartoonish figures raving bodies in vibrant colours and eccentric gestural brushwork. However, his recent works reveal a noteworthy transition in Cheetham’s artistic practice as he adopts a more subdued approach in addressing the physical tension and isolation that is emblematic of contemporary life.
Cheetham’s exaggerated representation of homogenous figures constrained within isolated spaces implicitly captures the deep-seated emotions that reside within every individual. Despite the lack of interaction among the figures, they individually exhibit desperate, suspicious, and confused sentiments which are further intensified by Cheetham’s reddened palette. The figures’ loose and exaggerated limbs evoke a profound sense of fatigue, which stands in stark contrast to his earlier works.
Cheetham’s deliberate play with the ambiguity of gender, time, and physical location emphasises a detachment from reality, inviting viewers into a realm of imagination characterised by confinement and unease. Mellow doubt represents a pivotal moment in Cheetham’s artistic development in addition to being a unique projection of one’s inner world, overflowing with intricate and authentic emotional complexities that we all experience in an era inundated with information.
