SIGNATURE POTS: Patrick Caulfield | Derrick Greaves

I am delighted to present this little online exhibition of two of the greatest British painters of the last half century, both of whom I was privileged to know. For several years I lived across the road from Patrick in Belsize Square and friendship with Derrick was one of the highlights of my life as a gallerist. I find it remarkable that there has never been a two person show that has brought their work together. Each artist’s work is distinct and individual but there are fascinating points of connection, from parallel visual languages with a predilection for strong lines and flattened colour, to a preoccupation with still life and interior subjects. Indeed from relatively early in their careers the two artist’s were being brought together critically.

In 1967, for example, the London Magazine published an essay by Mark Glazebrook (Director of the Whitechapel Art Gallery from 1969-72). Entitled “Pop-Kinky/Pop-Classical”, it addressed the work of four major artists - Patrick Caulfield, Derrick Greaves, Fernand Léger and Roy Lichtenstein - and was accompanied by illustrations of four works by Caulfield and five by Greaves. Admitting their differences, Glazebrook nevertheless dwelt on their similarities:

“They all avoid the handmade look, the expressive brushstroke. They all compose with thickish painted lines which both delineate forms and strike up a strong rhythm... Partly because of their clarifying use of line and partly because all four use strong doses of flat colour, their paintings have great impact as designs. A relevant point about subject matter is that if it is familiar, either from everyday life or from artistic tradition, it helps establish communication.”

Comparing the work of these four artists to that of Allen Jones, then gaining notoriety for his fetishistic images of women, Glazebrook concluded that:

“Whereas Jones is mostly what might be called Pop-Kinky, Léger, Greaves, Lichtenstein and Caulfield are all what could be called Pop-Classical.”

As the beautiful works in this exhibition reveal, still life - especially vases and flowers - was central to the work of both Caulfield and Greaves, whether as a subject in its own right, or as a central ingredient in more complex compositions. These objects retain their own refined, individual presence whilst also serving a more sophisticated compositional or iconographic function.

James Hyman

This is an online exhibition, please contact us to view the works.

Prices range from £ 650.00 to £ 18,000.00.

All works are for sale and are offered subject to availability and price revision.

Sales enquiries:

Colleen Milewski

colleen@jameshymangallery.com

James Hyman

James@jameshymangallery.com / 07766331697