I visited Callan Park Gallery today to see works from the Peter Fay collection. Peter has a wonderful collection of outsider art, and this was just a small selection. Here’s a little work from the show that caught my eye, by an artist I know almost nothing about (except that I hear he lives in Melbourne). 
Christian Den Besten
Strike
Painted Matchsticks on board, 30 x 40 cm (approx )
I found this a touching work, conveying a strong sense of inner space. And to cap it off, it reminded me of little “sculptures” I used to make as a kid, from matchsticks. One of the pleasures in making these works was buying boxes of matches in bulk and lighting “clumps” of about 20 sticks at a time, to get the blackened burnt tips I especially liked.
I loved the flare of a bunch of match sticks going up, that colourful, energetic Strike I see in Den Besten’s work.
