Having opened on July 15th, 2026 at Souland Gallery curated by Julana Allen (Julana Teichmann), Collection is a gathering of work by Pagan Lane, bringing his art from the physical world into Second Life.
A multimedia artist, Pagan uses a mix of digital manipulation, photo embellishment and traditional painting in oil and acrylics to create images that are both uniquely expressive and which cover multiple genres from portraiture through abstract and expressionism to the surreal. His work can bring together themes of the mystical and ethereal to the real and the emotive, and can serve to underscore his interests in psychology, the human condition and mythology.
At first appearing to be a randomly eclectic selection of pieces, Collection serves to illustrate all of the above, although there is a lean towards mythological subjects which I found to be richly engaging in their presentations and interpretations of their subjects.
Take the portrait of Pele, the Hawaiian creator-goddess; her association with fire and volcanism is brought forth in the use of red and black in the background, suggestive of lava flowing and cooling whilst bright splashes of red to the foreground represent fire. Meanwhile, her connection to Hawaii is gently communicated through the fiery red haku le around her head.
Similarly, one of the two studies of Persephone marvellously captures a key element of her story following her kidnapping and unwilling sojourn within the Underworld. Presenting her within what could be taken as a range of mountains, the image is a strikingly powerful personification of her return to the surface of the world.
Within Nyx and Hemera, meanwhile, the contrast between mother (Nyx, goddess of the night) and daughter (Hermera, goddess of the daytime) and their attributes is beautifully offered in a modern abstracted style where colour and the appearance of the Sun and Moon conveys so much. Alongside of this, Erebus and Aither (husbands to Nyx and Hemera) perfectly encapsulates their opposing forces (darkness and light) in a monochrome piece. These are works which sand both individually and as a pair untied in the stories they convey.
With Hephaestus and Triton, Pagan offers unique embodiments of the deities they represent, casting them in a whole new light. Triton, for example, foregoes the traditional middle-aged-man-with-beard portrayal and instead presents figure who is younger and vital and alive – as one might expect from a god of the sea. Within Hephaestus we similarly see not a maker of weapons for the other Olympians or a son shunned by his mother and seeking revenge (as in one branch of his mythology); instead we see the face of a young man whose eyes are very much the mirrors of his soul.
I could ramble on; but this is an exhibition to be witnessed first hand – and if you are unfamiliar the the many branches that are the tree of (particularly) Greek mythology, then Collection presents the ancient gods and their attributes in a manner which encourages further exploration of the subject. And even without such spurring, Collection presents a visual feast of art, each item within it can be appreciated in its own right and for the talents of the artist.
A genuinely rich and layered exhibition, Collection is not one to be missed.
SLurl Details
- Souland Gallery (Moordon, rated Moderate)
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 