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John McSweeney - picture detail

John McSweeney

February 5, 2012, 3:47 am

Paintings, Drawings, Prints, Collages and Constructions

Introduction

 

On the left are links to a range of works made during the past three decades. Some, 1980-1981 and 1982-1984, even date back to my time as a student at Camberwell School of Art, which is now part of the University of the Arts.

After leaving art school I exhibited work in a number of galleries, but not since 1995 (see CV). This work was characterised by a high degree of abstraction and led to the making of a number of painted constructions - go here for a good example.

For more than a decade I restricted myself to making pictures on paper, either painting, drawing or making collages. I usually produce a series of pictures with a similar theme although I often vary the medium. With collage I prepare batches of papers with differing textures and colour. Some are painted, some are printed, some are cut and some are torn. I also reuse parts of older works. Consequently these pictures utilise a range of media, from oil, watercolour, gouache and acrylic paints, to screen-print and lithographic inks.
Several of those dated 2003 were made shortly after the death of my father in December 2002 - for example.
I revisited this theme in 2005 with some portraits of him as a young sailor (he served in the Royal Navy during WW2). These painted pictures are a good example of a technique I have developed over the years which combines brushwork with monoprint.

In late 2006 I returned to making paintings on MDF panels or canvas and began some portraits of my son Jack and daughter Holly. With these pictures I avoided the use of any monoprinted application of paint and there is a greater emphasis on the brushstroke - go here for an example.

My most recent paintings continue to integrate portraiture with a substantial degree of abstraction and they make considerable use of the ground colour (the initial colour wash applied to the primed surface of the painting) as a means of unifying the work.

As to the content of these pictures, suffice to say that like any artist I simply try to depict, and make some sense of, life and the world around me. I'll say no more and let the pictures do the talking.