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GAVIN WATSON FLOCK & STOCK
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GAVIN WATSON FLOCK & STOCK
Jonathan Cooper Park Walk Gallery
20 Park Walk London SW10 0AQ t: +44 (0)20 7351 0410 mail@jonathancooper.co.uk www.jonathancooper.co.uk
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1 OUTSIDERS oil on canvas 40 × 40 ins / 101.6 × 101.6 cm £5,800
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GAVIN WATSON 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.
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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 EWE oil 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 HO M E G A M E 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 Cooper Park Walk Gallery