Opening Night of "Somewhere in this Song", an exhibition by Alan McGowan (running Saturday 17 January - Sunday 8 February, 10am-6pm).
Featuring richly-layered figure paintings and unfinished works, each portrait offers a fleeting glimpse of the intimacy the artist establishes with his models. Tone and medium become the “second subject” and add another layer of depth and elusiveness to each work, all of which are drawn from life.
Alan sees the very act of rendering the subject as bearing a tension between “the inherent elusiveness of the world and our attempts to hold on to it”, which is evident in the wilful runniness and translucency of his work.
His distinctive, painterly style also gives rise to striking skeletal forms. Alan’s memento mori have the fluidity of landscape and vibrancy of his life work and, in this way, contribute to his dialogue on the nature of life and the ways we experience it.
Gallery 2, St Margaret's House
All welcome. Admission free.