Paintings, Drawings, Prints and Sculptures
Paintings, Drawings, Prints and Sculptures
I was thrilled to receive these photos from a new collector of Abstract Figure X and Abstract Figure III being unboxed and displayed in his stylish apartment. Also included are morning and evening photos of the paintings in front of the stunning view from his window! Huge thanks again to Calvin for his interest and support.
Photos of Abstract Figure Paintings in Collector’s Home Read More »
This is the current state of my latest work in progress reclaimed metal sculpture. Forgot to measure it (again), but approx 1m high x 1.5m wide x 2m long (39″ x 59″ x 79″). Current working title: ‘Recumbent Figure in Cartesian Space’ or ‘Taking a Line For a Walk in 3 Dimensional Space. Doesn’t exactly trip off the tongue, so any better suggestions gratefully received!
The caption from the original post is summarised below, but I’ve also realised that the piece is about inviting the viewer to help ‘complete’ the piece by analysing the ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ space in order to decide what is ‘figure’ and what is ‘ground’. I was tempted to use Captain Beefheart’s Zigzag Wanderer soundtrack again, but thought the workshop sounds might add authenticity and interest!
This piece is based on the well-known Paul Klee quote that ‘Drawing is taking a line for a walk. In this piece I’m trying to take the line for a walk in 3 dimensional Cartesian space (x, y and z axes) in order to evoke a reclining female figure and – hopefully – provide just enough clues for an observer to work out what it is. The intention is to suggest planes and volumes without actually using any so that the observer is invited to quite literally ‘fill in the gaps’. On circling the figure, the hope is that certain familiar shapes will offer themselves for recognition (playing with ideas of ‘schema and correction’ after E.H. Gombrich’s book, Art and Illusion) whilst other – previously recognised shapes – will ‘disappear’ as they are seen from different angles (playing with ideas of focus versus peripheral vision)
Work In Progress Sculpture Read More »
New painting (oil on canvas 61.7cm x 61.7 cm/24.3in x 24.3in). It’s based on the satirical portrait, The Ugly Duchess, by Quentin Matsys (1513), and is a portrait of Klaus Schwab, head honcho at the World Economic Forum, who’s promoting the idea that ‘we’ eat insects. It’s the first of the Momus series of satirical portraits of the great and the good. Tentative titles: The Ugly Duchess (obvs…); Let Them Eat Cucaracha; WEF? WTF?! Other suggestions gratefully received. He/she was originally holding a bright green locust, but I thought that might be even more off-putting. This painting is for sale…
New Painting: The Ugly Duchess Read More »
Here’s a self-portrait sketch made during a live portrait demo for the Denbighshire and District Art Society this afternoon. Graphite on A1 paper (84 x 59.5 cm) in approx 50 minutes. I also attempted a portrait of a Ukrainian lady who kindly volunteered to sit, however my sketch didn’t do her justice so I’m too embarrassed to post it! Still, it was good practice and great fun meeting and chatting with everyone! My thanks to Chris and the DAS for inviting me.
Denbighshire and District Art Society Portrait Demo Read More »
Live portrait practice with Paul J (willow charcoal and charcoal pencil on A1 paper 84 x 59.5m in 2.5 hours).
Live Portrait Practice with Paul J Read More »
Live portrait practice with Paul J (graphite on A1 paper 84cm x 59.5cm in 3 hours). Bit of a caricature this one, but really enjoyed it.
Live Portrait Practice with Paul J Read More »
New Sculpture: TORSO III – Prometheus Devoured (Reclaimed metal 78cm x 67cm x 44cm / 31in x 26in x 17in)
This is one of an ongoing series of sculptures inspired by my reimagining of Damien Hirst’s ‘documentary’ of ‘The Wreck of the Unbelievable’ as actually having discovered sculptures which suggested that the ancients had invented Cubism/Modernism thousands of years ago.
It was instigated by an article highlighting Giovanni Battista Bracelli’s 17th Century engravings which seemed to contain hints of an early Cubist style even then.
My work is usually based upon the human(oid?) figure and I also love the ancient Classical legends and art. As is the case with a lot of my art, the style is influenced by Picasso’s approach to form, but also by my recent discovery of the work of Julio Gonzalez and David Smith.
I’ve been experimenting on and off for some years with making small maquettes formed from ‘flat materials’ through scoring and folding, similar to Picasso’s paper-based figurative sculptures. I love the idea of creating ‘volume’ from ‘flatness’. I also very much like Henry Moore’s (or was it Barbara Hepworth’s?) description of holes linking one side of a sculpture to the other so I thought this would be a good opportunity to play with those ideas, especially given how ‘flat’ the material used to make the sculpture is.
Recently, I’ve been looking at a lot of vintage anatomical medical illustrations and thinking about Francis Bacon’s use of images of butchery in his visceral paintings, so am trying to find ways to incorporate these into my art.
I hope viewers might believe that this sculpture, whilst being in a modernist style, looks as if it could have been discovered on the seabed, encrusted in barnacles and coral, as Damien Hirst’s creations were, but, that in my reimagining, viewers might also stretch their incredulity and believe that it might actually be genuine and provide evidence of a previously undiscovered artistic period in the ancient world..
New Sculpture: TORSO III – Prometheus Devoured Read More »
Live Portrait Practice with Paul J Read More »
TORSO IV (reclaimed mild steel 116cm x 62cm 61cm / 45.7″ x 24″ x 24″). My work is usually based upon the human(oid?) figure and I also love the ancient Classical legends and their associated works of art. As is the case with a lot of my art, the style is influenced by Picasso’s approach to form, but also by my recent discovery of the work of Julio Gonzalez and David Smith. Having read Smith’s collected writings, I was particularly struck by the sense of his artistic integrity and his passion for ensuring the artist was involved with every stage of the creation of a piece.
Being aware how harsh and industrial the reclaimed preformed steel I currently use as material is, I am trying to find ways to reduce or even undermine that effect. In his writings, Smith talks about the two strands of metal sculpture; forged/cast work and fabrication. This piece, therefore, is an attempt to marry the geometric fabricated ‘personages’ of David Smith with the monumental organic cast figures of Henry Moore.
I hope the viewer will recognise that the sculpture represents a human torso despite being abstracted greatly, and that they will take pleasure in the fact that it was all created by the artist’s hand by long and slow trial and error rather than using 3D computer software to design it. I hope, too that the viewer will be of the opinion that the sculpture feels both ancient and modern.
New Sculpture: TORSO IV Read More »
New Painting: Red and White and Black and Blue (oil on wooden panel 60cm x 84.5cm / 23.5″ x 33.25″). Inspired by the iconic photo of Farrah Fawcett.
New Painting: Red and White and Black and Blue Read More »