Richard Walker | Beacon Road Painting
December 1, 2005 through January 14, 2006
EXTENDED THROUGH JANUARY 14, 2006
There is a transparency of means in the paintings of Richard Walker – these are paintings about making paintings. Close up, the solidity of his images begins to break down into a flurry of brush marks. Walker finds his images in his immediate surroundings, often using his studio or other workspaces as his subject. In this series, done during a residency at the Joseph and Anni Albers Foundation in Bethany, Connecticut, Walker took to the wintry woods surrounding the Bethany buildings. His works find form in the act of looking and in the process of direct observation. They are an attempt to find an equivalent in paint to the complexities of vision. The current exhibition includes 12 paintings.
Runny paint, fluid marks and luminous color are tempered by the small intimate scale. The matte surfaces are comprised of chunky, loose strokes of liquid color roughing out the scene in a somewhat disheveled manner. The paintings have a sense of being done quickly with loose transitions between abstraction and an intact image. This indeterminate quality references larger issues of consciousness and perception.
Richard Walker was born in Cumbernauld, Scotland in 1955. In spring 2005 he was a visiting artist at the Joseph and Anni Albers Foundation. He was a recipient of the Pollock/Krasner Award in 2001. He studied at Glasgow School of Art from 1973 - 77. Solo exhibitions have included those at Berwick Gymnasium, Berwick upon Tweed (2000); Talbot Rice Gallery, Edinburgh (1999); Mappin Gallery, Sheffield (1996); and the Andrew Mummery Gallery, London (2003). He lives and works in Glasgow.