Jock McFadyen: A Book About a Painter

David Cohen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0853317917 ISBN 13: 9780853317913

Publisher: Lund Humphries Publishers Ltd, 2001

This is the first survey of the work of painter Jock McFadyen. McFadyen describes himself as a realist, and his intense paintings describe the urban backdrop. Human figures used to be central to these works, but having made pictures about London, New York, Berlin and Belfast, the locations have in many ways become the subject. In these monumental paintings, the central characters of his early work are replaced by commercial buildings, walkways, vomitories and the natural landscape. Although never part of any group or movement, McFadyen sees his main precedent as the line of British realism which includes Sickert, L.S. Lowry, the so-called School of London, and younger contemporaries such as Richard Billingham. He is close to the debate about painting and its relationship to contemporary art practice. He is also interested in those who have parallel concerns in other media. This book places the artist not simply within the recent history of British art, but also within the wider context of realism in film, the contemporary novel and music - from Hogarth to Punk and beyond.

Synopsis:

Jock McFadyen describes himself as a realist, and his intense paintings describe the urban backdrop. Human figures used to be central to these works, but having made pictures about London, New York, Berlin and Belfast, the locations have in many ways become the subject. Monumental paintings of commercial buildings, walkways and "vomitories", as well as the natural landscape, have replaced the central characters of his early work. Although never part of any group or movement, McFadyen sees his main precedent as the line of British realism which includes Sickert, L.S. Lowry, the so-called School of London and younger contemporaries such as Richard Billingham. He is close to the debate about painting and its relationship to contemporary art practice, and is also interested in those who have parallel concerns in other media. This book places the artist not simply within the recent history of British art, but also within the wider context of realism in film, the contemporary novel and music.

About the Author:

David Cohen is an independent art critic and curator, originally from London, now based in New York City. His criticism has been published in newspapers and magazines around the world.