John Murray

John Murray completed his BA in Fine Arts at the University of Stellenbosch and is currently based in Cape Town.

Murray’s primary focus is the notion of difference, as “difference” is characteristic of South Africa’s diverse nation in particular, and of contemporary society in general. He uses assorted mediums – including collage, bricolage (work built up with materials that happen to be available), oil and charcoal. Leaning towards abstraction, but not in its purest sense, Murray’s current body of work is rendered in a way that hints at representational forms beneath the surface, alluding to landscapes or structures that are simultaneously in the process of forming and disintegrating. The aesthetic result is a series of paintings that are a frenetic mix of colour, shapes and textures, and which are at once serious and playful.