‘For this exhibition I wanted to paint figures. I have worked from real life, painting in situ, and from photographs taken or found by myself. I work quickly and try to draw with paint. I want to create movement within my work, and hope that the paintings have a sense of being there in that moment. I really want the figures to occupy the space and that the viewer feels that”….Tim Parry
Tim Parry is an outstanding new talent emerging onto the British art scene. His first major show in the UK opened 18th November at Lucy Bell Contemporary, St. Leonards on Sea. East Sussex and runs until 6th December.
Although UK born, Tim has lived and worked abroad most of his adult life. He has been based in Andalucia, Spain for the last three years, holding a successful one man show at the Palacio de Santo Domingo, Ronda, which in the past has hosted major exhibitions featuring Goya, Miró, Leger and Picasso.
Tim paints in oil. His brush strokes have an energy and vibrancy that capture a moment in time in the everyday. Although the narrative of his work is domestic, the emotional depth conveyed by the power of his mark making and subtle detail is a real tour de force. I defy anyone to describe Tim’s work as suburban or bland! You are completely drawn into the story and entwined in the dialogue – time passes unnoticed as you contemplate the images. I would have happily taken several home with me. Something that I don’t often feel!
Tim sites Lucien Freud and Francis Bacon as two painters who have had a major influence on him on a personal level and this is clearly demonstrated through the emotional force of his work. Tim’s work does not display the tortured angst of the above artists, but, what its does present to the viewer is the power of the everyday – the real human condition laid bare for those who take the time to look – really look, not just casually glance and move on. In a transient world this is both refreshing and challenging.
Tim’s early influence at the tender age of five, came from his Grandfather, himself a draughtsman. He encouraged him to spend time in the studio and Tim claims he has carried a pencil and paper in his pocket ever since, drawing daily, working quickly and trying to capture a sense of the moment.
Arguably, linked to his early talent with handling a pencil was his ability with the snooker cue, good enough to enable him to become a professional snooker player in his twenties. He worked in restaurants to finance his degree in fine art as a mature student, graduating in 1998. Since then he has earned his living by his paintings alone, working in New York, Malaysia, where he ran his own gallery, and Spain. He is married, with a son, Reuben with another baby on the way.
For further information contact Lucy Bell, Lucy Bell Gallery, 46 Norman Road., St Leonards on Sea, TN38 0EJ
www.lucy-bell.com, gallery@lucy-bell.com, 07979 407629??, 01424 434828??
Words by Lesley Samms
