A R T M O O R H O U S E M O O R H O U S E 1 2 0 L O N D O N W A L L

JOE SIMPSON - PAINTINGS

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ALL IMAGES AND VIDEOS©JOE SIMPSON

EXHIBITION CURATED BY JOE SIMPSON, ELISA MARTINELLI

BROCHURE CONCEPT ARTMOORHOUSE

JOE SIMPSON - PAINTINGS

MEDIA PARTNER

1ST APRIL 2014 - 2ND MAY 2014 I ARTMOORHOUSE!MOOR HOUSE, 120 LONDON WALL, LONDON EC2Y5ET

!ARTIST’S STATEMENT !My artistic practice is a process of working on projects that produce a series of connected paintings on one theme. I like the idea that each project takes me as an artist on a journey, and there will be an element of surprise in the outcome. This exhibition represents selected works from the past few years of my career, from three separate projects: ‘Musician Portraits’, ‘Across America’ and ‘London’. !‘Musician Portraits’ was a project I undertook in 2010 – 11, where I approached notable and interesting musicians to be a subject or a painting. There are 22 portraits in the full series, which have been exhibited all over the country, including a solo exhibition at The Royal Albert Hall in June 2012. My portrait of Maxi Jazz from this series was shortlisted for the BP Portrait Award 2011 and exhibited at The National Portrait Gallery. I tried to root each painting in a tradition of painted portraiture - each piece has a quiet, still and almost introspective feel to them. I tried to capture the way that each person held themselves when I met them, usually I didn't give the musicians a great deal of direction, or plan how I wanted the piece to turn out. These paintings have a physicality to them that you don't get with a photograph, the paint has a specific weight and application - you can see layers and brush-marks in the hair and skin tones. !‘Across America’ is a project based on a month I spent traveling across the States, documenting the journey by making drawings, paintings and taking photographs along the way. On the famous train line, the Chicago Zephyr, I traveled from New York across country to San Francisco. When I returned home, I developed my studies into larger oil paintings, with a particular emphasis on the suburban, sleepy towns. !The most recent paintings in the exhibition are from ‘London’. After working on many paintings focusing on the American landscape, I was keen to turn my attention to the city I live in. I decided to return to the narrative, cinematic paintings that I had worked on in the early stages of my career. These paintings show realistic images that utilise the conventions of cinematography to present 'staged', fictitious scenes where time has been stopped and extended. These frozen moments are deliberately ambiguous, inviting the viewer to inject their own emotions, motivations and narrative context into the scene, thereby avoiding limiting interpretation. I decided to focus this series on more romantic and optimistic subjects, set with an iconic London backdrop.

‘LONDON’ After a few projects that focused on scenes from the American landscape, the British artist Joe Simpson decided to turn his attention to the city he lives in - London.  Joe decided to return to narrative, cinematic paintings for his latest series, which centre on romantic, optimistic scenes set with an iconic London backdrop.  Started in 2013, the series of paintings is currently an ongoing project.

Click and watch a film that shows the process of the painting 'Lanterns Over London' from start to finish - with a time delay camera in the artist's studio.  The clip is taken from a documentary currently being filmed about Joe's brand new project 'Act'.   Joe is approaching his favourite actors to be subjects for his new paintings. These won't be straight portraits, but compositions that place them as characters in fictional scenes. The project will be very collaborative, with each actor asked, 'what role have you always wanted to play but have never got the chance?' and then Joe will create a narrative painting depicting them playing that part. 

https://vimeo.com/73715483

‘ACROSS AMERICA’ In the summer of 2012 Joe spent a month travelling across America, documenting the journey by making drawings, paintings and taking photographs along the way. Travelling on the famous train line, the Chicago Zephyr, Joe travelled from New York across country to San Francisco. A selection of the sketches that were created on the trip can be seen below, as well as the oil paintings which have been developed from the studies now that Joe has returned back to his studio in London.

TRAILERS AND VIDEOS

https://vimeo.com/66509424

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'sliding hands’, oil on canvas, 90 x 70cm, 2013

'the heart is a lonely hunter', oil on canvas, 76x76cm, 2014

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'sliding doors', oil on canvas 70 x 50cm, 2014

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'the platform', oil on canvas, 120 x 60cm, 2014

Damon Gough (Badly Drawn Boy), oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Dan Mangan, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Emma-Lee Moss (Emmy the Great), oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Ezra Koenig (Vampire Weekend),oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Fyfe Dangerfield (Guillemots),oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Jack Steadman (Bombay Bicycle Club),oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Jade Williams (Sunday Girl), oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

JustinYoung, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Liam Frost, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Lisa Hannigan, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Matt Berninger (The National), oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Newton Faulkne, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

Patrick Wolf, oil on canvas, 60 x 60cm

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Boston Houses, pens on paper, 42 x 49.4cm

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Fare Thee Well, oil on canvas, 100 x 50cm

Hyde drawing, pens on paper, 29.7 x 42cm

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Jack-Jack, pens on paper, 29.7 x 42cm

Morning on Merrill Street, oil on canvas, 70 x 50cm

New York Madson, oil on canvas, 50 x 40cm

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Pittsfield, oil on canvas, 100 x 50cm

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Saturday Sun, pens on paper, 42 x 49.4cm

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Stop, pens on paper, 29.7 x 42cm

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This House is Not For Sale, oil on canvas, 100 x 50cm

Walk, oil on canvas, 50 x 40cm

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Exhibition (*solo shows marked by asterisk) !2013   !*Across America, Reuben Colley Fine Arts, Birmingham !2012   !*Musician Portraits & Almost There, Royal Albert Hall, London !*Everything Is Electrified, Camden Town Unlimited, London !*Musician Portraits, Rotunda Gallery, Llandudno !2011   !*Musician Portraits, Pop-up Gallery, Greek Street, Soho, London !BP Portrait Award 2011, The National Portrait Gallery, London !Beck's Art and Music Label Competition, Shoreditch, London !*Almost There, Cooper Gallery, Barnsley !2010    New York, New York, Azura Superliner !2009   !*Almost There, Waterside Arts Centre, Sale !*Joe Simpson, Cornerhouse, Manchester !*Almost There, Candid Arts Trust, London !2008 Accenture Corporate Art Loan, Accenture London !Office ArtMap Manchester, City Tower, Manchester !*Follow the Lights, Lowry Hotel, Manchester !Waterside Open Art, Waterside Art Centre, Sale, Trafford

2007 Bankley Open 2007, Bankley Studios, Levenshulme !The Grieve + Samaritans Art Prize, House of Commons, London. Jurors: Anthony McNerney and Camilla D'Arcy-Irvine !Blank Media, Zion Arts Centre, Manchester !Capricious (Degree Show), University of Leeds !Liberté d´Expression, Light Gallery, London. Curator: Sharmina Karim !Nationwide Mercury Music Art Prize 2007, The Hospital Gallery, London. Juror: Sir Peter Blake. Director: Dan Ford !!2006 !Liberté d´Expression Competition, Candid Arts Trust, London. Curator: Sharmina Karim !Gallery Redbill, Shotton !*Colourblind, Eleanor Winter's Gallery, Toronto !!2005 !Nationwide Mercury Music 'Art and Music 2005', The Air Gallery, London. Juror: Sir Peter Blake. Director: Dan Ford !*One By One, North, Leeds !!2004 !Channel 4 Self Portrait Competition 2004, National Tour (including Manchester City Art Gallery) !Bansang Hospital Appeal Charity Exhibition, University of Leeds !Gascoigne Gallery Painting Prize 2004, Gascoigne Gallery, Harrogate  

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ARTMOORHOUSE Moor House 120 London Wall London EC2Y 5ET T. +44 (0)7502211914 T. +44 (0)7919070335 WWW.ARTMOORHOUSE.COM INFO@ARTMOORHOUSE.COM

JOE SIMPSON WWW.JOE-SIMPSON.CO.UK JOE@JOE-SIMPSON.CO.UK

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