The playful works are a bright mixture of paint and collage, each leaving the viewer wondering about the layers within.

Ray says “We’re incredibly robust as children, bouncing back from some of the cruellest moments in our lives. It’s only later that those experiences pop up in unpredictable ways.”

“Dry your tears’ is a manifestation of our lives as children; our fears, our wonder and the unusual and disproportionate way we see things. While there’s an exploration of life’s cruelty, there’s also a quiet euphoria, of all experiences being new and wondrous.”

Growing up on the mid-north coast between Wingham and Gloucestor Ray never really took to chores about the farm, like chasing cattle or driving the tractor. He preferred to cut out shapes.

After years in advertising working in Sydney, London and New York, "I get a perverse pleasure in tearing up old magazine ads, especially old high-end glossies like Wallpaper. It’s like I’m destroying my old life to create a new one” says Ray.