We need to talk about some subjects. And we need to talk about them as soon as possible. That’s the reason why addressing them by writing brainy essays or hiding them on the multiple layers of indie fictions may not be wisest ways of creating a dialogue. The most sensible option is putting this dialogue where everyone can see it, making it something inescapable. That’s precisely what Fintan Magee does.
FINTAN MAGEE, THE INESCAPABLE DIALOGUE
Sometimes, art is chock-full of good intentions but these good intentions can’t find the way of reaching their audience. This is something never happens with Fintan Magee’s work, an Australian artist specialised in murals that are (literally) bigger than life itself.
However, this Australian artist born in 1985 has decided to take street art and push it to its most maximalist degree. His murals are literally colossal, and they are usually painted on huge surfaces. We’re talking about scenes where a single image is enough to explain a whole story with a deep meaning. Magee is able to synthesise some human crises in the form of pearls full of an unmistakable meaning able to spark social debate.
Eloquence turned mural. But not just any mural, but one of megalomaniac proportions that everyone can see. Because you can run from the last essay about the migrant crisis, but you can’t run from a Fintan Magee mural if you find it in your way down the street. And, after seeing it, be sure that you’ll create a conversation such as the one we had with the artist.
Places usually influence art: for instance, a lot of Mediterranean artists share some kind of artistic vision… Do you think Australia has been an influence in any way to your vision of art?
In some ways yes, I have always been very interested in the visual elements of storytelling which come from an Irish/Australian influence. Early Australian modernists like Albert Tucker, Arthur Boyd and Sidney Nolan were all storytellers. These days with the internet though, a lot of local styles and influences have been lost as artists are more globalised than ever.
I’ve read that memories of your childhood often play an important part in your art. Is that true?
Not so much anymore, I have been trying to move away from the nostalgia works recently.
ou were known at first as a graffiti artist, how was your first contact with street art?
To me, the two things are heavily connected. But the first contact I had with ‘street art’ was probably seeing stencil art in Melbourne.
And, the, when and why did you decide to start doing bigger formats?
I don’t know why, it was a natural progression really when I first started painting murals I was working almost exclusively in abandoned places and was working without permission. The walls got larger when I started to receive commissions and work more overseas.
Isn’t it difficult to get permission to do murals that big in public places?
Not really, I am usually invited by an organisation so they are usually the ones that deal with the permission process. It really depends on the locations. In Sydney, there are a lot of private homes with nice walls so you really just need permission from an owner or a family. But if the building is different, if it’s a big apartment block, for example, it becomes more difficult.
Do you like using those public places because this way your art starts a dialogue on social and political issues? Because there’s no way you don’t see the art piece when it is that big?
I started out writing graffiti so for me working on the street was just second nature. I do like that the work interacts with the public though. I like the idea of making art a part of people’s everyday routine.
Do you have any dream space you’d like to use for a mural but that is kind of impossible?
There is nothing really that I want to paint in murals that isn’t possible or that I haven’t done already. Lately, I have been looking more and more at sculpture and this is something I want to get into. So these will be the next challenges.
Your art has dealt with controversial issues such as climate change or migration. What can you tell us about the best and the worst reactions to your discourse?
I haven’t had any huge issues, to be honest. I have noticed that the works dealing with the migrant crisis are harder to sell in Europe, so it’s clearly a contentious issue there. But I haven’t had any really negative experiences making this work or any major backlash.
Which are the world problems you’re more interested in showing with your art right now?
For me, I am just trying to document the human experience through my own lens and to tell stories. Even when my work deals with bigger issues I try to frame it in a human context and ground it in experience. For this reason, the themes in my work vary project to project.
What is going to be your next big project?
I am going to a town in Australia called Dubbo, I have a commission in a hospital out there, it’s an interesting project because they have a large indigenous community and there is a health gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. The hospital is doing a lot of work studying the health benefits of native Bush foods. There are a lot of environmental benefits to Bush food, also I am interested in studying this a lot and theming my work around this.
