David Larwill was born in Ballarat, Victoria, in 1956. Together with several other young artists, Larwill helped establish the artist-run gallery Roar Studios in 1982. Larwill has subsequently emerged as one of Australia's most distinctive contemporary artists. His style of populating his paintings with stylised human figures and animals, his use of child-like forms, and the occasional inclusion of slogans, give his work a naive quality that sometimes seems simplistic. However, Larwill evokes an extraordinary range of feelings, moods and expressions through his paintings and many of his works have considerable primal strength. This monograph surveys his career from the early Roar period to the 'Southern Tablelands' series and the 'Road paintings', through to his most recent works. The text documents the artist's interesting life, tracing the influences on his work, especially his great love of Aboriginal and tribal art.
David Larwill
