Throughout his career, Garry Shead has chased his erotic Muse. Recast into an icon and celebrated as a goddess, he sees in her the biographical, mystical and spiritual. For him, the Muse is not always sentimental but rather an exhilarating expression of life.

In this work the Muse appears as Athena the Greek goddess for wisdom, artistry and warfare. Pictured wrestling a bull, to understand this image we must look to the bull's story. Poseidon created the bull for Minos to sacrifice. Because it was so beautiful however, Minos could not. Enraged, Poseidon destined Minos' wife to fall in love with the bull and give birth to its spawn, a half-bull half-man Minotaur. In this work, Shead narrates the bull's demise at the hands of Athena.

Collected by all public institutions, Shead has won the Archibald and Dobell prizes. Frolicking in the serious and profane, his work is at once poetic and interrogative. It will superbly framed and is sure to enliven collections of iconic Australian art, as well as all in need of some inspiration.

Garry SHEAD (1942 - )
'Athena'
etching on paper
Image Size: 15 x 12 cm
Dimensions: 53 x 47 x 3 cm
Signed: Editioned, titled and signed 'Garry Shead' in lower margin.
Comes with a Letter of Provenance

Condition: Excellent

(c) Garry Shead / Copyright Agency 2024

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