Art is a medium that allows people to express their thoughts and feelings on various world issues affecting citizens today through the use of descriptive paintings and drawings. Currently, more and more teenagers are being exposed to and experiencing the negative aspects of the modern world such as the concept of stereotypes and emotional instability. They are beginning to lose their true identity and are falling captive into what is accepted as "normal" in the modern society. The intriguing theme of human frailty has made an appearance in many works of historical and contemporary artists, with some works even causing disturbance within the audience. This exhibition, titled Mutation, is for audiences who like to delve deep and deconstruct the notions behind the human mind and indulge themselves in the darker aspects of art. The artworks included in this exhibition portray various artists' beliefs on human identity and what makes up their own personal and cultural identity, with human mutation being the key symbol and theme within the artworks. .
Four artists that have included the themes of human frailty and mutation in their artworks are Peter Booth, Ryoko Suzuki, Gordon Bennett and Francis Bacon. Artworks by these artists have been carefully selected to enable young audiences to explore the deeper meanings behind them.
The first piece included in this exhibition is Painting 1977 by Peter Booth, who is a contemporary Australian figurative and surrealist painter born in 1940 in Sheffield, England. Most of Booth's artworks depict the difficult childhood he experienced in Sheffield, where he grew up during war years and witnessed the destruction war caused to the country. His works are characterised by intense emotional power and horrifying figures such as mutilated bodies and war scenes. The emotion Booth includes in his artworks is so immense that it is possible for the audience to feel what the main "character" in his works is feeling.