This was published 7 years ago
Emerging painter and autism ambassador Patrick Francis expresses himself through his art
By Debbie Cuthbertson
Melbourne artist Patrick Francis' brightly coloured portraits are distinctive works of art.
You may have seen them in the National Gallery of Victoria's Melbourne Now exhibition, or more recently in current group shows at Brunswick's Counihan Gallery or Linden New Art in St Kilda.
His work has been acquired by the Art Gallery of NSW and Artbank, he's had a number of shows at Sydney's Robin Gibson Gallery, has exhibited in India, Singapore and Bangkok and he's won a number of awards.
Francis is a prolific creator – he sits at the kitchen table at home and paints, carefully, rarely spilling a drop.
He's also an award-winning sportsman (a particularly keen golfer) and works as a disability ambassador.
Francis, 25, who has autism, began painting as a child alongside his older sister, Lesley Steff (they both have works in the Moreland summer show, Factivism, at the Counihan).
He's very polite, a little bit bashful, and a man of very few words (his parents, Sandra and Greg Francis, help answer questions on his behalf) but his enthusiasm is abundantly clear when we visit the family's Essendon home.
Many of his paintings are in the style of old masters, who he studies in art history books. The works of Vincent van Gogh and Diego Velazquez are particular favourites (especially the latter's portrait of Spain's King Philip IV). Yet more contemporary artists, including singers Kylie Minogue, Nicky Minaj and Michael Jackson, are among his other regular subjects.
The kitchen and lounge are filled with his paintings – although Mrs Francis says that's only a small sample of his output, as most of his works are on display, now in 15 current exhibitions at last count.
Francis works at Arts Project Australia each Wednesday and is one of 130 artists who regularly practise at the Northcote studio.
He is among several artists from the studio – including Julian Martin, Terry Williams and Alan Constable – who have had significant mainstream success, well beyond the realm of what is normally deemed "outsider art".
Arts Project Australia was started in 1974 by Myra Hilgendorf, the mother of an artist with an intellectual disability, to provide her daughter and others with as professional an environment as those enjoyed by their non-disabled peers. The studio was founded in 1983 and each day has about 45 artists working there. It receives funding from the state government and federal funding
"We have a number of artists who have reached that stage in their career," says Arts Project Australia studio manager James McDonald. "Patrick has done it quite swiftly. We have a number of artists who are represented by mainstream galleries and overseas.
"Patrick is among a small cohort of artists who are having great success. Most of our artists we try to [help them] develop ... professional CVs and profiles. We have rigorous selection committees and it's important the work we exhibit has a standard and quality.
"Luckily for us, and we love hearing this, it's their vocation – it's what they spend most of their time on and they're making money to support themselves."
Patrick Francis' work features in the Arts Project Australia annual gala exhibition from December 3 and the ADEC Artability Diverse-city exhibition at Federation Square from December 13.