wordsINGA WALTON

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DANIELDORALL

THERE MAY BE FAIRIES AND A MENAGERIE OF ANIMALS, BUTDANIEL DORALL’S ART IS FARFROM SUGAR SWEET.

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1 / THE GOOD SHEPHERD, 2007, 50 CM X 30 CM X 6 CM

2+3 / LONG BAR, 2008, 80 CM X 26 CM X 6 CM(TRIPTYCH)

4 / TINKERBELL IS CROSS, 2006, 20 CM X 10 CM X 4 CM

5 / NATURE STUDIES, 2005, 20 CM X 10 CM X 4 CMPRIVATE COLLECTION, MELBOURNE

6 / DIRTY LAUNDRY, 2006, 20 CM X 10 CM X 4 CM, COLLECTION OF ROBERT DOBEL, MELBOURNE

7 / WELL, 2007, 20 CM X 20 CM X 4 CM

ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND DIANNE TANZER GALLERY

PHOTOGRAPHY:IMAGES 1 - 3, 7: DANIEL DORALLIMAGES 5 + 6: SIMON STRONG

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Don't be misled. Daniel Dorall'swork is not cute. Realized on aminiature scale at 1:87, within theclaustrophobic confines of a mazestructure, Dorall's work is afascinating exercise in patience,intricacy and precision.

Anyone expecting cute, charmingand benign may be quite appalled atthe gleeful malevolence with whichDorall creates his (often macabre)scenarios. Within the diminutivestructures there is invariably ananguished and perversely crueldrama unfolding; large tragediesrendered disproportionately small. InDorall's micro worlds, you cannot hearanyone scream. We are compelled toobserve, but, at risk of breaking thework, we cannot act. One carelessfinger would do it, which is Dorall'spoi nt. Carelessness, indifferenceand petty cruelty is everywhere, thesilent and ubiquitous backdrop ofcontemporary society. Dorallacknowledges that we all periodicallyfeel unappreciated , insignificant andcomparatively voiceless. For Dorall,the maze acts as a metaphor for life'sdead ends and blind alleys. To this headds a bracing dose of frustration,isolation, disappointment, lonelinessand quiet unravelling.

After completing a Bachelor ofScience (Architecture) in his nativeMalaysia, Dorall moved to Australiain 2003. He finished a Bachelor of

Architecture at the University ofMelbourne and is currentlyundertaking a Masters in Sculptureat Monash University. "One of myfavourite things in architecturaldesign, and what I did best, was thebuilding of the 3D models," Dorallsays. "So my work in hand-makingmazes out of cardboard is sort of anatural progression - from makingmodel buildings to making sculpture."Dorall's maze plans were almostexclusively based on the City ofMelbourne grid, but his recent workreflects a growing confidence andwillingness to experiment withboundaries. "I like to think of thismove as a positive progression fromthe practical, quite rigid rule base ofmy architecture background to amore flexible and subjective fineart approach."

"The longest I've taken to make awork is probably about six months.It's usually not so much about thephysical construct ion but moreabout the composition and thelayout, which needs a lot of thoughtand time to get right," says Dorall."It's a fluid process wheresometimes I buy random figurinesand get inspired by putting differentelements together to come up witha narrative. Other times, I look at themaps and recognize certain areaswhich would work well for a narrativeand then build the maze." As thesevignettes play out, Dorall's darkhumour and sense of the absurdmanages to be at once funny andsadly poignant. Tinkerbellls Cross(2006) sees the often vindictive andjealous fairy of J. M. Barrie's storiesventing her ill temper. Ankle deep insnow, she clubs a family of seals todeath. "I knew almost instantly thatI wanted her to be on a rampage,"Dorall laughs. "I painted her dress apastel green and her hair blond tomake her 'classically' innocent ...of course she isn't doing anythinginnocent in this scene!" Similarly,Nature Studies (2005) skewers thetime-honoured tedium of the schoolexcursion. Two tigers have escapedfrom their enclosure; one paws theteacher it has brought down in apool of blood while uniform-cladschoolgirls flee the scene. In anotherpart of the zoo, a girl who haslagged behind dawdles behind thesurrounding hedge, unaware of theturmoil engulfing her fellows.

Dorall's largest and most complicatedwork to date, The Good Shepherd(2007), is part of a new series basedon the floor plans of churches. "Onemajor influence in my work isreligion. It comes up in how theworks are structured and how t henarratives are depicted. Making them

is almost meditative," Dorall reflects."I actually got inspiration for thismaze when sitting in church oneSunday, listening to the readingabout the good shepherd [a pericopefrom Saint John's Gospel], and howit is symbolic of putting oneselfbefore others, and of self-sacrifice."Well (2007), also referencing biblicalgreen pastures, is an idealizedbucolic scene of sheep grazingpeaceably on manicured grass."The maze form here doesn't needwalls to exist. Paths in the road ora change of levels can determineinvisible boundaries for figures inthe narrative and, in turn, for theviewer." Dorall explains that Well is"unique in that it has both wall-lessand walled sections in the work."What is not immediately visible isthe stricken figure of a little girlstranded at the bottom of the well,fretful and clutching a teddy bear.

Ambiguous works like Dirty Laundry(2006) show Dorall's capacity totackle current political events."That was the first vertical piece Imade," he recalls. "I'm interested inexploring sexuality, politics, conflict,war and death - so when I first sawthe figure of the woman with herhands up, I knew I wanted a gunpointed at her." The woman withher naked child, and other deadcivilians piled up in a ditch, impliesethnic cleansing and genocide."One of the reasons I placed thesoldier's gun so close to the headof the woman was to createimmediate tension," says Dorall."The composition of the figurinesthat convey the narrative is a veryimportant part of my work, for bothclarity and aesthetic purposes."

Dorall's recent exhibition , Shaft,maintained this focus on verticalforms. Like John Brack's iconic TheBar (1954), Dorall's Long Bar (2008)also quotes from Edouard Manet'sA Bar at the Folies-Bergere (1882)."It was one of the first paintings wediscussed in a conservation class Itook back in uni, but more generallyit's about composition, particularlythe hierarchy between the mirroredspaces," Dorall remarks. "Back inMalaysia, I did a final year designproject of a long and narrow hotelby railway tracks, which had a triple-volume-height bar overlooking thetracks." Dorall hopes his pithy worksoffer an alternative world view."Even though I often try to leavemy work open-ended, so that theaudience gets to interpret thework according to their ownunderstanding, I do place my ownpersonal views within it - be theysomewhat indirect or ironic," headmits. But not cute.

Daniel DorallDianne Tanzer Gallery108-110 Gertrude StreetFitzroy Victoria 3065www.diannetanzergallery.net .au

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