Time to Fear Contemporary Art, curated by Gozo’s SJ Fuerst, challenges the recent trend of making fine art approachable and less intimidating. Instead, this show preys on our fascination with fear and plunges contemporary painting into the exhilarating world of horror. With the artist’s signature blend of pop culture influences, contemporary subjects and everyday objects, and immersive gallery installations, the show playfully exploits our common experiences with the genre, immersing visitors into the dark world that exists in ghost stories, movies, and our own macabre imaginations. Together the five acclaimed painters – of whom Luca Indraccolo and Lydia Cecil also live in Malta – deftly balance beauty and terror in a collection of thirty new works, fully embracing the dark allure of the genre.
Horror has long been a popular genre, captivating audiences and inspiring creatives across all sectors of the arts. However, recent years have been hailed as a ‘Horror Renaissance’, reflecting heightened engagement and appreciation for the genre’s cultural and artistic merits. This show celebrates the current zeitgeist, fusing horror and fine art into a unique exhibition over two floors.
“Horror and fine art are a natural pairing as they both hinge on a deep, emotional response. My goal with this exhibition is to present exceptional, contemporary paintings in an unexpected way,” says curator and exhibitor SJ Fuerst.
“This is my first time curating a group show, and I kept the brief vague, asking each artist to tap into their dark side and create new work inspired by horror, whatever that means to them. We’re all atelier-trained representational painters, with our own unique style and artistic voice. Therefore, I limited the colour scheme to black, white, and brown, using the grisaille palette as a unifying thread to visually connect the five different bodies of work. Black and white imagery also made sense conceptually as our eyes can’t perceive colour in the dark, so monochrome images have a dangerous or ‘otherworldly’ connotation. I gave the artists the option of adding red to their palette for work exhibited in the downstairs space of the gallery – another colour associated with fear and danger, and visually, a beautiful addition to a black and white image.”
“I’m using mirrors throughout the gallery to play with how the art is viewed. For example, three pieces will be framed under mirrored glass, so it looks as if the figures are inside the mirror (a reference to the ‘Bloody Mary’ folklore and game that terrified me at childhood sleepovers). Other paintings will be seen first as reflections in mirrors before you then turn to see the actual painting. I’m using these familiar horror elements to create an immediate sense of anticipation and unease. However, it’s a balancing act between creating an immersive exhibition that drops visitors into an exciting world they associate with horror, and keeping the focus on the art. Mirrors work particularly well for this, as they toy with how the art is experienced, but ultimately enhance the paintings rather than distract from them. Using mirrors also made sense because they’re a tool painters use to check for mistakes. We’re always looking at our work upside down or reversed in a mirror as it helps to see the painting with fresh eyes.”
“After spending a couple years painting the super bright candy colours it was fun to do a 180 and focus on dark, black and white images. It might seem like a big jump from candy to horror, but both are about the rush – one from sugar, the other from adrenaline. Like ‘Gimme Some Sugar’ [presented in Malta Society of Arts last year], this exhibition playfully taps into popular culture: people are consistently drawn to scary movies, haunted maze attractions, even real ghost-hunting, as forms of enjoyable entertainment. I love how after something scary happens people often laugh.”
It’s fascinating, she continues, how something harmless [like a painting] can elicit a genuine response of fear, a building of tension, fright, and then happiness at having survived, something that you don’t often get from an art show. “So, despite the darker tone of this exhibition, its goal is still to bring entertainment and happiness. There is a quote by Jordan Peele that I love, ‘The difference between comedy and horror is the music.’”
“Vera’s Ghosts was my first painting for the show: when I think of horror my mind immediately goes to ghosts. The style is heavily influenced by early spirit photography of the mid-19th century. Even though technology has improved vastly, these early ‘ghostly’ images are still the quintessential representation of a ghost to me – partly see-through with multiple exposures suggesting a presence not governed by our laws of physics. Her angry expression is also symbolic of horror, the idea of facing something with no compassion or empathy, just piercing anger that means to do you harm. She was designed to represent terror but my view of her has softened as I’ve lived with her in my studio these past months. If I’m upset about something we look at each other with the same angry expression and it’s oddly cathartic, it’s like “Yes Vera, you get it” She’s morphed into that friend who is quick to anger, but fiercely loyal and always has your back!” she smiles.
Time to Fear Contemporary Art runs from 17-21 March 2025 at 8 Duke Street St James’s, London SW1Y 6BN
