Brisbane based artist and art therapist Jhana Bowen aims to develop a sex-positive culture in his upcoming exhibition, Conscious Erotic Art, being staged at his studio at 2b, 9 Chrome Street, Salisbury.
Attributing the process of painting to be of monumental support in healing traumas associated with sexual abuse early in his childhood where he grew up in the Indian Himalayas. His work has led him to discover a growing number of Australian organisations dedicated to combatting the growing presence of sex trafficking around the globe.
He said statistics indicate a staggering one million children are exploited annually in sex slavery which tragically is indicated to be just the tip of an iceberg as many incidents are unreported. In seeking to address what the artist believes to be a lack of awareness in perception around sexuality, his works explore the human sexual impulse as intrinsically healthy and life-affirming in ways that can transform and redesign society.
His work celebrates organic expressions of human sexuality. Delicate and intricate use of line and detail capturing light feature heavily in many of his works, suggesting an embodiment of conscious sexuality. Many of Jhana’s paintings are inspired by dreams, meditations, and visions in which images for his paintings are found.
An online 3D gallery of the exhibition will be launched on the 20 November at Jhana’s website with an in-person event opening. Jhana will also be hosting a Visionary Art Retreat in November on the Sunshine Coast at Bellbunya’s Eco-Community to support people to access their own creativity and unplug from the many demands of the modern world.
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