Spray gun philosophy: Katharina Grosse on painting

A new installation at Carriageworks is the next chapter in Grosse’s somewhat unorthodox journey with painting. What drives her and what does she value?
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Katharina Grosse standing within her Carriageworks installation; Photo: ArtsHub.

Last week, German mega-artist Katharina Grosse unveiled her Sydney Festival installation at Carriageworks, a colourful work comprised of 8,250 meters of fabric – suspended, knotted and draped – which she then took to with a spray gun.

Overnight it became a trending sensation globally on social media. We saw a similar response last year when Grosse painted an abandoned US Army aquatics facility in Fort Tilden Park, Queens – one of the areas hard hit by Hurricane Sandy. Images of the candy-coloured structure circulated wildly on social media channels, adding an uncanny dimension to the experience of viewing Grosse’s work.

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Gina Fairley is ArtsHub's National Visual Arts Editor. For a decade she worked as a freelance writer and curator across Southeast Asia and was previously the Regional Contributing Editor for Hong Kong based magazines Asian Art News and World Sculpture News. Prior to writing she worked as an arts manager in America and Australia for 14 years, including the regional gallery, biennale and commercial sectors. She is based in Mittagong, regional NSW. Twitter: @ginafairley Instagram: fairleygina