Untitled 98U99A

An element of abstraction is present in nearly all of Tim Maguire's meticulous paintings, from his abstracted depictions of light beaming between corrugated tanks to his overcropped appropriations of 17th and 18th century Dutch still lifes. Maguire's dalliance with abstraction culminated in his experimental series of 'Splash' paintings that were made by spattering mineral turps onto his pictures and then wiping away the solvent mixture that had been left to pool, dribble and corrode the underlying paint film. As one can see in Maguire's work, 'Untitled 98U99A', this controlled yet chanceful process yields extraordinary patterns, textures and colour gradations that recalls imagery seen through the lens of a telescope in an observatory or a microscope in a laboratory. Indeed, the artic critic Sebastian Smee described Maguire as an 'aesthetic scientist' in his review of Maguire's exhibition of 'Splash' paintings at Mori Gallery in Sydney during the late 1990s.

Although Maguire has moved on from making pure, non-representational paintings he has continued to utilise his 'Splash' technique, to brilliant effect, in subsequent series of works.