Sonya Veronica - Rouge Revisited at Guildford Lane Gallery Melbourne

It is rare to meet an artist who exudes energy the way Sonya Veronica does. When I first heard the name I had images of a superhero – hiding behind the guise of an artist during the day whilst turning her brushes into weapons to clean up the streets of Melbourne at night.

Ok, so I have a pretty vivid imagination, but you have to agree it is an extremely cool name. And maybe she doesn’t have superhero powers (for a start she doesn’t use brushes) but she does have an extraordinary aura about her, contagious and energising. And after an informal chat I came away a happier person which in itself a pretty good superpower to possess.

Sonya has no formal training as an artist to speak of. Now you may say that could - even should be a major stumbling block for anyone looking to launch an artistic career, and in many ways you would be right. However for Sonya it seems unnecessary and would probably end up being a major hindrance to her artistic development. She seems totally at ease with her non conformist approach to creating, and although she may not have any real set agenda she seems to be able to still pull it all together.

Born in Surabaya, Indonesia, Sonya settled in Melbourne in 1996 where she studied Interior Design at RMIT. Since 2004 she has participated in a number of group and solo shows and this latest exhibition titled Rouge Revisited explores not just her passion for colour (with the obvious focus being on red) but also her love for Jazz & Classical music which she interoperates through her bold abstract expressionist style.

By applying her colours onto canvas with only her fingers, she 'feels' - rather than 'paints' her compositions. As music plays whilst she works she interperates the notes, rests, and rhythm; turning sound into colour and form and letting the music take her on a artistic spiritual journey.

Now she has finally broken through her initial fears of exhibiting (most artists, trained or untrained generally go through this at some level) there seems to be an uninhibited freedom in her work. Is it perfect no, is it for everyone, certainly not, but one thing which cannot be denied is the underlining sense of honesty and integrity in her work which is unusual for an artist of her age.

I am interested to see how Sonya will ultimately develop as an artist; maybe she will turn to Sculptor or Installations for a time or maybe she will decide to go in an entirely different direction. What I do know however is that whichever way she dose finally decide to go she will go there with a smile on her face and 100% committed.

This current exhibition at Guildford Lane Gallery has been put together in a remarkably short space of time. Sonia decided that she needed to help in some way with the recent tragedy in Victoria and so decided on an exhibition - 50% of the net artwork sold will be donated to the Australian Red Cross, for the Bush Fire Relief Fund. Guildford Lane Gallery who are highly proactive in the promotion of upcoming talent in Melbourne has also given their space, services and time at no charge.

Rouge Revisited is showing until March 28th with an opportunity to meet with the artist in person during her talk at the Gallery at 6:00pm on Wednesday 25th if you would like to bid on any of these works you can download a silent auction form from Guildford Lane Gallery’s Website.

If you have not had the opportunity to visit Guildford Lane Gallery in Melbourne then I urge you to do so; not only is this a wonderful opportunity to support an innovative emerging artist but also a chance to support a very worthy cause.

Sonya Veronica -Rouge Revisited
March 18 -29
Guildford Lane Gallery Melbourne