Something That Feels Like the Truth
Solo show with Unit G gallery, Hackney Wick, London 2018
‘Painter of beautiful portraits Sal Jones creates those that range from the darkly atmospheric to the cinematic.' @londonartcritic,
https://fadmagazine.com/2018/09/09/the-top-7-art-exhibitions-to-see-in-london-this-week-5/
‘Sal Jones at Unit G Gallery, a little more than just a moment captured, a painter worth taking a longer look at…’
https://organthing.com/2018/08/21/
‘Painter of beautiful portraits Sal Jones creates those that range from the darkly atmospheric to the cinematic.' @londonartcritic,
https://fadmagazine.com/2018/09/09/the-top-7-art-exhibitions-to-see-in-london-this-week-5/
‘Sal Jones at Unit G Gallery, a little more than just a moment captured, a painter worth taking a longer look at…’
https://organthing.com/2018/08/21/
An exhibition of contemporary oil paintings that re-interpret the portrait. Unlike traditional portraiture there are no sitters and they do not represent a specific person but rather suggest an emotive state indicative of the social and cultural times we live in. They can be interpreted as part conversations, part musings, into which the viewer is drawn, willingly or not, into the world of the subject, both in a voyeuristic and complicit way. The painted surface draws attention to the process of painting and to the artist’s choices in transforming the photographic source image. The title of the show alludes to the atmosphere and layers of fiction in the works and originates, in part, from a line in a novel the artist was reading.
I am exploring in paint how it might feel to be any of these characters. Like you, I don’t know them and I can only imagine the reality of being someone else so I am offering you something that feels like the truth.
The paintings depict subjects in states of unease and emotional turmoil. They have been inspired by the flawed and the troubled; whether it’s the female centred detectives in Euro crime dramas and Scandi-Noir or the problematic pairings of couples from classic 60’s cinema, they share a sense of foreboding. I have used captured moments rather than the traditional poses associated with portraiture so working with photography becomes a part of the process. The photographic sources are just there as starting points for the paintings, I don’t stick to them religiously. I rarely do drawings in advance but use the paint to draw directly on the canvas then build up layers from washes to more gestural mark making, often combining brushwork with palette knife. It is an intuitive approach, I let the painting evolve. I don’t like to explain too much as I think the paintings should be able to speak for themselves, but what I will say is that they come from a place of genuine love and intrigue for the process of painting.
I am exploring in paint how it might feel to be any of these characters. Like you, I don’t know them and I can only imagine the reality of being someone else so I am offering you something that feels like the truth.
The paintings depict subjects in states of unease and emotional turmoil. They have been inspired by the flawed and the troubled; whether it’s the female centred detectives in Euro crime dramas and Scandi-Noir or the problematic pairings of couples from classic 60’s cinema, they share a sense of foreboding. I have used captured moments rather than the traditional poses associated with portraiture so working with photography becomes a part of the process. The photographic sources are just there as starting points for the paintings, I don’t stick to them religiously. I rarely do drawings in advance but use the paint to draw directly on the canvas then build up layers from washes to more gestural mark making, often combining brushwork with palette knife. It is an intuitive approach, I let the painting evolve. I don’t like to explain too much as I think the paintings should be able to speak for themselves, but what I will say is that they come from a place of genuine love and intrigue for the process of painting.
