Susan Angharad Williams: A Certain Space

SUSAN ANGHARAD WILLIA MS | 1

Susan Angharad Williams A Certain Space

Susan Angharad Williams A Certain Space

A solo exhibition at the BADA Fair, Stand B56

9th – 15th March 2016

Jonathan Cooper

Susan Angharad Williams

A still life painting is intrinsically paradoxical: in its creation the artist captures the essence of the carefully chosen objects that it depicts, forever freezing them in the present moment. In so doing he or she preserves their memory for posterity, and yet inevitably acknowledges the unstoppable passage of time. The very act of creating an artwork, the mixing and layering of paint, uses and records time, and from Antiquity onwards the fragility and brevity of human life has been ever present in the Western still life tradition. In the Romance languages death is explicitly alluded to in the term used to describe still life: la nature morte, la natura morta, la naturaleza muerta. The name of the genre in English and other Germanic languages however, is more celebratory: here we are stopping time, stilling life. In turning our gaze to a few simple objects, we acknowledge their beauty, and that of life, savouring it even as we know that this moment will pass.

Time is a deeply important theme in this series of thirteen paintings by Susan Angharad Williams, yet unlike the still lifes of the Dutch Golden Age, its presence in these works is not a memento mori, but the thread linking the past to the present. From the pre-historic flint tool found in ‘Orchid, Flint, Garlic Stems’ to the bright plastic pin of ‘Rose Hips, Leaves, Blue Egg Shells’, Williams celebrates the daily objects which we use and which testify to our presence. Her depiction of reproductions of ancient Pompeian frescoes in several paintings highlights the power of art to record and outlive our daily lives. Nature, too, has a rich and important presence here, and natural forms such as egg shells, and flowers in both full bloom and on the cusp of decay create a subtle, geometric tension with the manufactured objects they accompany. Importantly, they highlight the universal cycle of life and its vibrant potential for renewal.

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This series of paintings represents more than three years of dedicated work, each meticulously crafted and carefully composed. Every element, from the objects represented, their form, position and relation to each other, to the numerous fine layers of paint that make up the finished work, is reflected upon and executed with great clarity and sensitivity. Describing her working process, Williams declares:

‘When putting a still life together instinct, emotional response, excitement are what add up to make the final decisions. Painting is, for me, a process of looking, understanding, re-creating. The painting becomes almost a story - a passage through time’.

Williams studied at the Royal College of Art under Sir Peter Blake and Donald Hamilton Fraser. Her tutors described her as ‘one of the two most outstanding artists of the last twenty years at the college, the other being Kitaj.’ Nevertheless, despite this promising introduc-tion, following her graduation in 1969 she decided to step away from an art world which at the time was unwilling to accommodate spatial realism. Nevertheless, Williams continued to draw and paint, and in 2007 entered her work for the ING Discerning Eye Exhibition. She was selected from over 2,000 applicants for the ING Discerning Eye Purchase Prize, leading to a solo exhibition at the ING headquarters in 2008. It was here that Jonathan Cooper first encountered her work, and, deeply impressed by its quality, offered Williams an exhibition with the gallery in 2009. Now, we are honoured to be holding our second solo show with this remark-able artist.



Peonies, Garden Fresco and Oyster Shell

Oil on linen

23.62 × 18.5 ins

60 × 47 cm

£9,500



Elderflowers in a Red Bowl

Oil on linen

12.6 × 15.75 ins

32 × 40 cm

£5,000


Blue Reflections

Oil on linen

17.3 × 19.1 ins

44 × 48.5 cm

£8,000


The Goya Calendar

Oil on linen

19.25 × 13 ins

49 × 33 cm

£6,800


Fuchsias

Oil on linen

10.24 × 110.24 ins

26 × 26 cm

£4,500


Gold and Purple Lily

Oil on linen

15.5 × 21.5 ins

39.3 × 54.6 cm

£7,800


Freesias, Poppy Dress and the Adams Cup

Oil on linen

22 × 18.5 ins

56 × 47 cm

£9,000


Rose Hips, Red Leaf

Oil on linen

16.9 × 20.8 ins

43 × 53 cm

£8,500


Rose Hips, Leaves, Blue Egg Shells

Oil on linen

22.25 × 18.88 ins

64 × 48 cm

£10,000


White Flower, Red Bowl

Oil on linen on board

7 × 8.88 ins

18 × 22.5 cm

£3,500



Camellia and Pompeian Fragment

Oil on linen

8.66 × 11.81 ins

22 × 30 cm

£4,250

Camellia and Russian Folder

Oil on linen

20.28 × 15.35 ins

51.5 × 39 cm

£7,800

above opposite

Camellia and Russian Folder

Oil on linen

20.28 × 15.35 ins

51.5 × 39 cm

£7,800


Orchid, Flint, Garlic Stems

Oil on linen

19.69 × 15.38 ins

50 × 39 cm

£7,500



Susan Angharad Williams

1943 Born Glamorgan, Wales

1967 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition; painting bought by Carlisle Art Gallery

1968 Group exhibition at the Carlisle Art Gallery

1969 MA Degree at The Royal College of Art, London

2006 Welsh Artist of the Year Exhibition, St David’s Hall, Cardiff

2007 Awarded ING purchase Prize at the Discerning Eye Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London

2008 Solo exhibition at ING Bank, Main Gallery, London

2009 Solo Exhibition at Jonathan Cooper, London

2009 - 13 Exhibited at 20/21 British Art Fair, Royal College of Art, London

2010 - 13 Exhibited at BADA Antiques & Fine Art Fair, London

2010 - 11 Exhibited at Haughton’s Art Antiques, London

2013 Exhibited at 20/21 British Art Fair, London

Exhibited in 25 Years: Anniversary Exhibition, Jonathan Cooper, London

2015 Exhibited at the London Art Fair, Islington

2016 Exhibited in mixed exhibition, New Year, New Art, Jonathan Cooper, London

Notable CollectionsING Art Collection; Royal College of Art and Carlisle Art Gallery.

Jonathan Cooper 20 Park Walk London SW10 0AQ

t: +44 (0)20 7351 0410 [email protected]

jonathancooper.co.uk

Jonathan Cooper

Documents

Susan Angharad Williams: A Certain Space