GAVIN WATSON FLOCK & STOCK

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Jonathan CooperPark Walk Gallery

20 Park Walk London SW10 0AQt: +44 (0)20 7351 0410

mail@jonathancooper.co.ukwww.jonathancooper.co.uk

GAVIN WATSONFLOCK & STOCK

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1 OUTSIDERS oil on canvas 40 × 40 ins / 101.6 × 101.6 cm £5,800

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Born in Sunderland in 1962, Gavin Watson lives and works in rural Northumberland.

His paintings are inspired by and firmly rooted in this rich and ancient region.

Frequently referred to as the cradle of Christianity in Britain, Northumberland has been

paradoxically characterised throughout its history by both spirituality and terrible violence,

seeing the rise of saints alongside the arrival of invaders by land and sea. An ambiguous

borderland fluctuating between Scotland and England, and often lacking the royal

protection of either, it was subject to long periods of lawlessness, and preyed upon by

reivers from both sides of the border. This turbulent past is evident in its landscape, in

the great castles of Alnwick, Bamburgh, and Dunstaburgh, and in the fortified tower

houses which can still be seen in many villages, including Gavin’s own. Known as Bastle

houses, these thick-walled dwellings provided shelter not only for their owners, who would

retreat to an upper storey reached only by ladders, but also for the animals upon which

their livelihood and survival depended, safely ensconced within the lower floor.

This image of livestock enclosed within a protective yet alien domestic setting has inspired

this series, Flock & Stock, in which Gavin explores the relationship between human and

animal, and the internal and external worlds which we share. From the cantering horse

transformed in a child’s imagination into a mystical unicorn to the wobbly ceramic ducks

which decorated his grandmother’s living room (and so many English homes), these

playful yet multi-layered paintings perfectly capture the essence of both beast and man.

Previously represented by Cricket Hill Gallery, New York, this is the first exhibition of Gavin’s

work in the UK for over 20 years.

GAVIN WATSON

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2 CALL OF THE CHILD oil on canvas 40 × 50 ins / 101.6 × 127 cm £7,800

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3 SALIVATION oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 × 45.7 cm £2,400

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4 NORTHERN SOUL oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 × 45.7 cm £2,400

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5 THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY oil on canvas 50 × 50 ins / 127 × 127 cm £7,500

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6 THE GOLDEN BOUGH-WOW oil on linen 18 × 30 ins / 45.7 × 76.2 cm £3,500

following two spreads

7 EAT, LOVE PREY oil on canvas 20 × 40 ins / 50.8 × 101.6 cm £4,000

8 THE HUNT FOR RED oil on canvas 20 × 40 ins / 50.8 × 101.6 cm £4,000

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9 KNOWING MEEK oil on linen 12 × 14 ins / 30.5 × 35.6 cm

£2,200

10 KNOWING EWEoil on linen 12 × 14 ins / 30.5 × 35.6 cm

£2,200

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11 ESCAPE GOAT oil on canvas 18½ × 26 ins / 47 × 66 cm £3,500

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12 BUCK PASSING oil on canvas 40 × 50 ins / 101.6 × 127 cm £7,800

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13 HIGH NOON oil on canvas 28 × 32 ins / 71.1 × 81.3 cm £4,800

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14 TROTTER oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 ×45.7 cm £2,400

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15 WAITING FOR DOGOT oil on canvas 40 × 32 ins / 101.6 × 81.3 cm £5,800

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16 HOME GAME oil on canvas 50 × 50 ins / 127 × 127 cm £7,000

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17 AMERICAN BEAUTY oil on canvas 28 × 32 ins / 71.1 × 81.3 cm £4,800

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18 THE BEAST IN ME oil on canvas 18½ × 26 ins / 47 × 66 cm £3,500

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GAVIN WATSON

1987 Solo Exhibition at Durham Almshouse, UK

1988 Exhibited at Sunderland Museum & Art Gallery, UK (Group Show)

1989 Exhibited at Northern Centre for Contemporary Art, UK (Group Show)

1991/1993/1995/1997/1999/2001

Exhibited in the BP Portrait Award, NPG, London, UK

1992 Awarded Northern Arts Travel Award

1992 Exhibited at Middlesborough Municipal Art Gallery, UK (Group Show)

1992 Grey’s Art Gallery, Hartlepool, UK

2002 Solo Exhibition at Cricket Hill Gallery, NY, USA

2009 Award for Artists, Arts Council, UK

2009 Artists residency at Lerman Trust, Pennsylvania, USA

2013 Awarded Arts Council funded travel in India

2013 Making it Special, Artist Residency Panel Discussion, NY, USA

2014 New Contemporaries at Jonathan Cooper, Park Walk Gallery, London

2015 Exhibited at London Art Fair

Commissions Undertaken

illustrated on front cover

12 HIGH NOON (detail)

illustrated on back cover

14 WAITING FOR DOGOT (detail) Photography by John Donoghue

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Jonathan CooperPark Walk Gallery

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