Practice in art refers to the decisions and actions that affect choices, perceptions, ways of working and views of an artist or art historian. Tim Storrier sums up the practice of an artist by saying that “A painting is really a graphic illustration of where a particular artist is at that point in his life and the art encompasses what the artist has gone through in their life.” On art historians and critics he says “Other people come along and interpret the painting with their own life experiences” The subjectivity involved in a critic or art historian’s views are extremely high.

The practice of Tim Storrier is informed by the theories of painting an idea with a poetic edge. This idea then goes searching for “totems” to portray itself upon. Storrier speaks about this theory: “My paintings don’t start with visual stimulation, it’s usually an intellectual idea with a poetic edge, then the idea goes searching for different totems to portray itself upon.” Storrier elaborates further that “The bottom line of my paintings is that they are trying to come up with totemic images about Australia. W

The Americans however interpret Storrier’s burning paintings “in a way Australians hadn’t.” Storrier’s artworks were seen as “Highly political, ecological statements about the landscape and it’s vulnerability; the burning rope, fists, fruits, became symbols of civilisation consuming itself, leaving only the charred ruins on the horizon.”. The Americans critics were influenced by the cultural frame as the war’s around the world (Kuwait war, Gulf War) were occurring at the same time that Storrier released his paintings to America. The Americans could identify with Storrier’s work as the pictures on the news and tabloids showed burning objects from the war and they understood Storrier’s work to be political statements about the wars that were being fought around the world – they understood the burning fruits to be “Symbols of civilisation consuming itself.”

Some topics in this essay:
America Americans, Sydney Nolan, Tim Storrier, Poppy Syndrome”, Subjective Cultural, Question Discuss, Australia America, Tim Storrier’s, Australia Storrier, art historians, Unfortunately Australian, critics art historians, critics art, idea poetic edge, totemic image, image australia, idea poetic, totemic image australia, cultural frame, poetic edge, personal theories, totemic images, subjective frame, interpret painting own, painting own life,