Philip James Mylecharane is an early career artist living and working in nipaluna/Hobart, lutruwita/Tasmania. Mylecharane’s practice examines how paint can describe multifarious states of perception, including the entanglement of identity and inhabited space. Underpinning his work are two distinct focuses, portraiture and interior spaces. Each subject is clearly recognisable, yet remains ambiguous at the same time, where space and form appear to be either patched together in a state of repair or in a process of being torn apart.
With a unique combination of representation and abstraction, each surface hosts a visual wrestle between order and disarray. Yet within the complexity of each composition and Mylecharane’s diverse application of paint, is a highly meticulous approach, stitching seemingly contrasting elements into a delicate balance. This also includes a technique that utilises paint’s unique capacity to visualise complex ideas and offer deep understanding. The multiple dichotomies created by Mylecharane echoes a broader social anxiety of how we present ourselves between public and private spaces. This is also captured through the layering of paint within each surface, including discrete details juxtaposed with thick impasto. Both applications providing visual form, yet also acting as a mask, paint helping to reveal and erase simultaneously.
Philip James Mylecharane graduated with a PhD in the creative arts at the University of Tasmania in 2020. Mylecharane has been a finalist in numerous prizes nationally including the Lester Prize, the Sunshine Coast Art Prize and Bayside Art Prize in 2025, as well as the Henry Joens Art Prize in 2024 and the Prospect Portrait Prize in 2023. His work is held in private collections nationally.
Exhibitions
