The great Armenian-American painter Arshile Gorky once said, “Abstraction allows man to see with his mind what he cannot see physically with his eyes. Abstract art enables the artist to perceive beyond the tangible, to extract the infinite out of the finite. It is the emancipation of the mind. It is an exploration into unknown areas.” Art has a voice that has different tones and pitches, which we as humans capture through the magical notes of our fingers. This voice needs to be sung through the flairs of paintbrushes and strokes of paints, filling a blank canvas with mesmerizing colors and creating an alternate reality filled with hues of wonder and incredulity.
Tommy Balogh is an Australian artist residing in Australia who specializes in light-reactive organic abstract art. His Instagram account is one that you need to get your eyes accustomed to, a bash of different colors, from bright to mellow tones, to pastels to grayish hues all blended with different designs and intricacies. He current follows art trends like the spearhead interactive organic abstract art. He likes to follow and gain exposure from a handful of fluid art accounts and people with a unique artistic vision that keep him inspired and intrigued.
A meaning and purpose behind an artwork is what makes it even more priceless in the eyes of the creator and the viewer, to know that a certain story or lesson is being conveyed is what blossoms its value. Tommy’s work aims at awakening our sense of awe and wonder through his arts fusion of organic abstract form and light within people and he successfully does this with immense grace and poise.
He has developed his career from scratch, never shying away from taking major opportunities and learning and growing with them through an eclectic mix of experiences. Long story short, it started with graduating with an Honor from the Australian National University School of Art to a stint in street art on the streets of Sydney, to an invite-only residency to Germany by the founders of VIVID international light festival, to his most recent collaborations with international companies, entrepreneurs and thought leaders. It’s been an incredible journey on which his family is also quintessential to him and his path as an artist and person.
Pride and self-satisfaction are components that help an artist or any individual for that matter to find worth in their being and is a motivating force to keep trying and daring to take higher leaps. Tommy is proud of many things but the most significant turning points for him is the landmark exposition at Nishi Gallery in 2016 in Canberra, Australia. Voyage was his most successful exhibition, it made the Australian National News and he was interviewed on TV to tell his story, plus the invite-only residency to Studio Kybra, Germany which gave him extraordinary experiences, opportunities and contacts.
This pandemic has brought out the challenges in life that we thought we would never face, putting things in perspective for many of us and giving a new meaning to our life. The pandemic brought Tommy out of his comfort zone. Through these challenges he set up his home studio, kicked up various collaborations, participated in podcasts and generated new concept pieces to push his practice further and spread his message to the world through the digital realm.
Passing on your practices and lessons as a creator is one of the greatest gifts you can bestow upon the world apart from your art. Tommy’s message to other artists is to never give up and fight for your passion in life, which is your art. But the most important thing is that if you are young, plan ahead where you want to be. That way you can step in the right directions and define your career trajectory early on. His advice can not only be applied in the field of art, but in all walks of life.
In Tommy’s view art is important because it frees your imagination, but if a student is serious about art they must be prepared to develop a thick skin and learn through example to make it a real career. Art is not easy to make into a paying career, especially one that you can support your family on. Having said that, never losing sight of the bigger picture and what you want to contribute to the world at large is very important. The source of your drive should be what should be remembered during the dark times.
A family is an unbreakable unit that bears through every weather, making sure its roof stays put. For Tommy too, his family is his greatest inspiration because they have gone through it all with him, including his parents in the early years of his career and journey. He is highly influenced by artists of the likes of Anish Kapoor, Damien Hirst and James Turrell.
We at ARTOZE encourage and highly appreciate such actions where artists come forward to stand along with the other fellow community members to share their experiences, views and knowledge through "Inspire and Empower", a series By the Artists, For the Artists in association with ARTOZE Gallery and Exhibitions.