Jean Dubuffet once observed that “Art loves to be incognito. Its best moments are when it forgets what it is called.” This sentiment resonates in the work of Australian painter Steve Woodbury, whose practice embraces the accidental and unselfconscious qualities of art. Informed by both Western Abstract Expressionism and Asian calligraphic traditions, Woodbury’s paintings reveal an original lightness and intuitive coherence. His compositions of textured colour, fluid veils, and totemic forms establish an autonomous visual language, guided by an internal logic rather than imitation of nature. Woodbury’s philosophy, evident in his Dying from Birth series, aligns with Existentialist thought: form emerges from void, asserting identity amid transience. His gestural marks, at once deliberate and fleeting, embody a tension between vitality and impermanence. Each work becomes a meditation on presence within ephemerality—a self-contained burst of energy aware of its own disappearance.
