Australian (b. 1957)
Tic-Tac-Toe (2005)
Hand-drawn lithograph
48cm by 47cm
Edition of 50
Signed and dated ‘Clinch ’05’ lower right
Provenance:
Robert Clinch, Melbourne
Private Collection, Melbourne, acquired from the above
Collections:
Hamilton Gallery, Hamilton; Myer Collection, Melbourne
Exhibited:
‘Urban Myths‘, Castlemaine Art Gallery and Historical Museum, Castlemaine; Benalla Art Gallery, Benalla; Latrobe Regional Gallery, Morwell; Geelong Gallery, Geelong, 2007 (another example)
‘Urban Myths and Legends‘, Dickerson Gallery, Melbourne, 2007 (another example)
‘Black & White‘, Hill-Smith Gallery, Adelaide, 2008 (another example)
‘Solitary Perspectives‘, Shepparton Art Gallery, Shepparton, 2009 (another example)
‘Lithographs, Drawings & Egg Tempera‘, Robin Gibson Gallery, Sydney, 2009 (another example)
‘Themes & Variations‘, Manningham Gallery, City of Manningham, 2010 (another example)
‘Real Life: Stories from the Inner Suburbs‘, Latrobe Regional Gallery, Morwell, 2011 (another example)
‘Robert Clinch‘, Philip Bacon Galleries, Brisbane, 2011 (another example)
‘Parallel Lines; Recent work by Robert Clinch and Peter Serwan‘, Riddoch Gallery, Mt Gambier, 2011 (another example)
‘Robert Clinch: Fanfare for the common man‘, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat; Wollongong Art Gallery, Wollongong, 2013 (another example)
‘Robert Clinch: Sounds of Silence‘, The National Museum in Szczecin, Szczecin, Poland, 2014 (another example)
Literature:
David Thomas, ‘d’ART: The Art of Robert Clinch‘, Lytlewode Press, Stoke-on-Trent, England, 2007, (illustrated p. 124).
David Thomas, Julie Collett, ‘Robert Clinch: Fanfare for the common man’, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, 2013, (illustrated p. 61).
‘Tic-Tac-Toe‘ is Clinch’s visualisation of the well known children’s game on an industrial scale with a dilapidated building serving as the board. Clinch is fascinated by games and child’s play and these elements are often found in his work with noughts and crosses featured in this example and paper darts, a recurring motif across his oeuvre. The work boasts a number of layers, with the 3 x 3 grid pattern repeated with nine prominent openings each housing nine window panes. Air vents and duct tape have been inserted as rudimentary mark makers. Finally, almost out of frame in the lower register we see the graffitied remnants of previous tic-tac-toe games. The work juxtaposes the child friendly game against the derelict urban setting of broken glass and peeling render not safe for children.