The paintings in this show follow on from both Lisa Radford’s exhibition at Westspace (2013) c. At Sea, Before Dinner, and also a Bonnard painting the artist could not see and the email exchange Radford had with its prior owner. Whilst some of the works are fine and laboured, others are quick and loose referring to dumb, potentially droll observations of location. The paintings for this exhibition come in pairs in relation to unseen narratives, shared conversations or un-unique observations to form images that are not quite representational and not quite abstract. 

Included in this exhibition are works titled ‘Furniture Paintings’ which represent functional design, decor and objects such as maps and textiles. Paintings of thin white handkerchiefs as if just dropped sit alongside mapped areas of a wasp’s path wedged inside a window frame.  One of the pairings is closely related to the MUA (Maritime Union of Australia) and includes a piece of plastic containing the embroidered signatures of some of those workers who participated in the 1998 Waterfront dispute. This embroidered work was made by an artist and friend of Radford’s, Danielle O’Brien, who sat on the docks at the time of the dispute and collected the signatures of the workers. The quilt she intended to make was never finished and subsequently Radford has painted a version of the plastic piece that will sit alongside the original. It is hoped that the framed plastic artefact will be handed/gifted to the MUA.