Fake flag
(1994)
Medium
thermo-setting laminate, enamel paint, crayon, metallic and plastic self-adhesive tape on composition board
Measurements
(a-h) 198.1 × 262.2 cm (overall)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, 1999
© Courtesy of the artist
Gallery location
Gallery 10
Level 2, NGV Australia
About this work
Constanze Zikos’s works combine influences ranging from ancient history to modernist painting and popular culture. In Fake flag he transformed the Australian flag using everyday materials, such as enamel house paint and laminex adhesives in lurid colours and patterns, and by inserting stars symbolic of other cultures into his representation of the Southern Cross. This work reveals not only the artist’s fascination with surfaces and decoration but also his interest in geometric abstraction. Moreover, it reflects the interest of many artists during this time in cultural identity and concepts of authenticity.
Artwork Details
Inscription
(a) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse u.l.: 1 (in a circle)
(b) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse u.l.: 2 (in a circle)
(c) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse u.l.: 3 (in a circle)
(d) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse u.c.l.: 4 (in a circle)
(g) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse (inverted) l.c.: 7 (in a circle)
(h) inscribed in blue fibre-tipped pen on reverse u.c.: 8 (in a circle)
(a-h) artist stamp in ink on reverse u.c.: CONSTANZE ZIKOS
Accession Number
1999.29.a-h
Department
Contemporary Art
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of The Vizard Foundation
Subjects (general)
Abstract Art Allegory and Symbols
Subjects (specific)
Australia (nation) belief symbols commonwealths flags geometric abstraction identity stars (motifs)
Movements
Hard-edge