Hurvin Anderson
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Works
Hurvin Anderson
Mirror: Don't Look Back 1, 2015Intaglio / Relief Collograph, Screenprint, Gold / Silver Leaf
Somerset Satin 300gsm35 7/8 x 28 1/2 inches
(91.1 x 72.4 cm)Edition of 9© Hurvin Anderson/Durham Press, 2015In Mirror: Don't Look Back, Anderson presents ten different adaptations of a single composition: a circle hanging slightly below center on a gray flower-patterned background. This collographic floral motif appears...In Mirror: Don't Look Back, Anderson presents ten different adaptations of a single composition: a circle hanging slightly below center on a gray flower-patterned background. This collographic floral motif appears in each print, varying in shade and line weight. The imagery within the circle changes more drastically throughout the portfolio – in one print, the "mirror" seems to clarify its surroundings; the circle features a sharper, more intelligible floral pattern. In another, the mirror has a transformative effect, with the luminosity of gold leaf contrasting with the relatively dull backdrop. Still others obscure the pattern, encircling them, appearing as hazy orbs that Anderson has imbued with an almost otherworldly mystique.
Through repetition and subtle variation, the portfolio continues to develop themes common to Anderson's work, such as the intersections of place and memory and familiarity and estrangement. Similar to his suite of paintings Peter's Series which was the subject of critically acclaimed exhibitions at the Tate Britain, London, and the Studio Museum Harlem, New York, the images in Mirror: Don't Look Back fluctuate between abstraction and representation. Anderson employs a seemingly reticent geometric composition and largely unsentimental color scheme, but the title and the wallpaper-like backgrounds invoke connections to personal, intimate moments in the home. The slight differences between the images further their elusive quality. It is unclear if the portfolio depicts ten mirrors that are alike, or if there is only one mirror that has been illuminated, obscured, and tarnished through the workings of time and memory.
Viewing rooms
BiographyB. 1965, BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND
British painter Hurvin Anderson lives and works between London and Cambridgeshire. He studied painting at the Wimbledon College of Art and received his Masters from the Royal College of Art in 1998.
Anderson’s work shifts between abstraction and representation, featuring pared-down compositions that draw on art-historical traditions of still life, landscape, and portraiture. He often depicts barbershops, parks, beaches, and other social places as a means to explore questions about community, identity, and inclusion, especially as it relates to his Jamaican heritage and the Afro Caribbean diaspora.
Anderson has collaborating with Durham Press since 2009, using screenprint, relief, and intaglio to produce abstracted barbershop scenes, mirrors, and portraits, among other subjects.
Represented by Thomas Dane, London, and Michael Werner, New York, Anderson has held several solo exhibitions at each gallery. His numerous solo exhibitions at other venues include Anywhere but Nowhere, The Arts Club of Chicago, Chicago (2021); They have a mind of their own, Rat Hole Gallery, Tokyo (2019); Backdrop, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (2016); and Art Now: Hurvin Anderson Tate Modern, London (2009). In addition, Anderson has also been included in several group exhibitions such as Life Between Islands, Tate Britain, London (2021); Duro Olowu: Seeing Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2020); and Á Cris Ouverts, Les Ateliers de Rennes – Contemporary Art Biennale, Rennes (2018). In 2017, he was shortlisted for the prestigious Turner Prize and was subsequently represented in the Turner Prize Exhibition, Ferens Art Gallery, Hull, England (2017).
Anderson is represented by Michael Werner Gallery in New York and Thomas Dane Gallery in London. His work is in numerous collections, such as those of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Tate, London.