For artist G Kustom Kuhl, X marks the spot. While full words convey meaning, the individual characters themselves exist in a complex web of symbolism and significance. Kuhl uses a range of symbols and words within his practice, each with a rich tapestry of associations that the viewer themselves is left to translate, intuitively attracted to them even if we don’t quite understand them.
X in particular is a recurring device within the artist’s work. X is the unknown, a mathematical constant or variable, a mark of dissent or agreement, the end of a journey or a symbol of death. When turned on its side it is additive, embodying growth or success. When cut in half, it becomes an arrow, or a vessel. It means something different to everybody, its inherent layers mirroring the techniques Kuhl employs with ink and paint.
Kuhl’s works are built up carefully over time, often with heavily worked sections that partially obscure the strata beneath. Ink runs across musical scores, mysterious black and white imagery folds under browned dictionary pages. Our only clues are the cyphers stencilled by the artist, enigmatic lists of numbers and letters, directing our eye but not leading it.
Kuhl is showing work in a group exhibition, Breaking Boundaries, from 5 April-11 May 2024 at
Art Lovers Australia Gallery, Melbourne.
Above: G Kustom Kuhl, Bridge, 2023. Mixed media on board, 46 x 61cm. Courtesy: the artist.
G Kustom Kuhl, Get Up In The Morning, 2023. Mixed media on paper, 30 x 42cm.
G Kustom Kuhl, Moderato, 2023. Mixed media on board, 45 x 61cm.
G Kustom Kuhl, Twenty Two – Eleven, 2023. Mixed media on board, 40 x 50cm.