Tales of Tempt

Provocative Sydney artist, Tanya Linney, is unveiling her first collection in two years – Tales of Tempt – at Surry Hill's China Heights Gallery on Friday 4 July 2014.

Tales of Tempt is an implied visual narrative, exploring the struggle between what is our true identity and the seductive layers of consumerism that we use to escape our lives and ourselves. Linney explains: 'In a modern society full of visual overload and stimulus, we are becoming increasingly obsessed with the exterior self-image, tempting and fuelling our social anxieties. The idea of -self' has become a comic gentrification, a bi-product of materialism and identities formed through brands."

As with all of Linney's work, there is a layer of humour to the collection. She adds: 'As much as we explore these aspects of society, we also learn not to take ourselves too seriously, which is a notion often forgotten in today's world of celebrity, fame and glamour."

The collection of 18 pieces, all of which are one-offs, use paint, charcoal, oil, collage and enamel on canvas and wood. Tales of Tempt is Linney's first collection to predominantly use paint, highlighting a significant shift away from her usual methods of photography and collage. Each piece can be hung four ways, creating a number of different abstract journeys whichever way you look at it.

Australian born artist Tanya Linney began her love for photography, drawing and collage as a teenager. However a career in fashion meant that she spent the next 15 years travelling and experiencing the world through fashion eyes. After her days as a model, she studied design at The School Of Colour and Design and embarked on her creative journey.

Sexual exploitation, female idealism, repression, age, beauty and role-playing all have their own important place in her work. Linney's experience as both a model and a woman create a reflective authentic effect in all her work, giving her first-hand insight into the business of selling sex, self-image and materialism.