Nick Mullaly, Courtly Love, 2024, oil on canvas, 61 x 71cm. Courtesy of MARS and the artist.

Courtly Love is a symbolic suite of new paintings by Naarm/Melbourne based artist Nick Mullaly.

The term ‘courtly love’ refers to a romantic union between two unmarried people in medieval times. Though not typically consummated, these relationships were dependent on acts of flirtation and chivalry, a concept still relevant in contemporary life. The works exude a dramatised romanticism by referencing classical iconography of religion and mythology, cinema and gay erotica, acting as totems of love, lust and sorrow.

Informed by methods of post-impressionist and expressionist painting and the granular nature of film, Mullaly emphasises the qualities of scattered light, energetic gestures and warm matte layers on the canvas, building theatrical scenes that move from sharpened to hazy.

Each painting contemplates the human heart when spellbound by desire, or caught in the rapture of courtly love.

Opening night: Friday 6 December, 6-8pm