Garry Shead Carpe(t) Diem - Adam Rish

'He is a very much a multifaceted person,’ says artist Gary Shead of his subject Adam Rish.

Rish is a doctor, playwright, director and artist. His art takes the form of designs which he works up and then takes to weavers in Turkey or Sumba (off Bali). Rish always finds the interpretations of the weavers fascinating and Shead says of the carpets, 'They’re a real cultural mish-mash’.

Shead and Rish have been friends since they met in the south of France in 1981. Shead has always been impressed by Rish’s 'mania for life – he eats everything (metaphorically speaking)’.

Shead said after winning the Archibald Prize in 1993, 'That’s half the battle with doing a portrait, that the personality comes over’. Rish’s strong and vibrant personality is an important part of this painting. The words 'carpe(t) deim’ are both a reference to Rish’s connection with carpets and his ability to 'seize life and run with it’. Shead’s main concern in creating this portrait was capturing this gregarious spirit and character.

Gary Shead is a filmmaker, printmaker and teacher as well as an artist. In the 1960s he was associated with Martin Sharp in the publication of the now-infamous satirical magazine OZ, and worked as a scenic artist with ABC TV.