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INSIGHT: WEEK 10 | Arthur Timothy
19 - 25 August -
INSIGHT IS A NEW ONLINE PLATFORM PRESENTED BY PIPPY HOULDSWORTH GALLERY, DEBUTING WORK BY A DIFFERENT ARTIST EACH WEEK. NEW WORK MADE DURING LOCKDOWN WILL BE HIGHLIGHTED ALONGSIDE A SHORT VIDEO PRESENTED BY THE ARTIST.
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INSIGHT: WEEK 10 | ARTHUR TIMOTHY
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Arthur Timothy is a painter whose practice responds to personal experience, memory, and close family history. Recent works have drawn inspiration from a number of small black and white photographs taken during his early life in Accra, Ghana and Freetown, Sierra Leone, where the artist grew up before moving to the UK. His work is characterised by a vibrant palette and soft application of paint that reflects the light and lucid colours of West Africa.
The artist’s compositions present figures relaxed at moments of leisure and socialising at events. They engage confidently with diverse aspects of African and Western culture, as seen through the various activities, architectural styles and clothing depicted throughout his work. Through an intimate personal lens, Timothy engages in a wider move to foreground black histories that are often unknown or ignored. His practice complicates uniform narratives that construct black identity, aspirations and experience, as well as perceptions of life on the African continent.
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Kente
2020oil on canvas100 x 100 cm, 39 3/8 x 39 3/8 in£ 10,000.00 (ex tax)This vibrant and intimate portrait is based on a black-and-white snapshot of the artist’s mother, Adeline Timothy, at a garden party in 1950s Accra, Ghana. Vividly brought to life, the scene captures Adeline enjoying a moment of peaceful reflection during what is evidently a lively gathering, hinted at by the cigarette packs and half-empty glasses. The sumptuously rendered setting demonstrates the artist’s characteristic interest in architectural materials and styles. The title of the painting refers to Adeline’s intricately woven yellow dress, made in the traditional Ghanaian style of “kente”. This type of garment took on a new contemporary significance when, in the aftermath of the George Floyd protests, members of the US Democratic party were photographed wearing “kente” scarves to symbolise the historic importance of Africa and its diaspora to American culture.
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Brothers
2020oil on canvas100 x 100 cm, 39 3/8 x 39 3/8 inSoldSet within a lush West African landscape, this family portrait depicts three brothers on the cusp of early adolescence. The awkwardness of boyhood is conveyed by their poses and facial expressions, as they solemnly stare out at the viewer. The trio are framed by abundant piles of fruit, bushes, trees, streams and mountains – a verdant natural world that is suggestive of the boys’ own growth and development. Though the scene is set in the modern day, Timothy makes use of traditional art historical techniques: the boys form a triangular composition used in many classical paintings, while the dramatic interplay of light and shadow on their shorts mimics the elaborate depiction of clothing in Baroque art. Engaging with the canon of art history, Timothy uses his tender and lucid paintings to foreground Black histories often absent from it.
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Currently on view at Ronchini Gallery, London
22 Dering St, Mayfair, London W1S 1ANTimothy's work is currently also on view as part of the two person exhibition Introducing: Arthur Timothy + Juan Miguel Quiñones at Ronchini Gallery, London.
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Introducing: Arthur Timothy + Juan Miguel Quiñones
25 June – 25 September 2020
Ronchini Gallery
22 Dering Street, London, W1S 1AN
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ABOUT ARTHUR TIMOTHY
Arthur Timothy (b. 1957, Accra, Ghana) spent his early years in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and now lives and works between London and Bath, UK. He studied architecture at The School of Architecture, The University of Sheffield and set up his architectural practice, Timothy Associates in 1986. Timothy continues to maintain his artistic practice alongside his professional career. His work has recently been exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts, London. Collections include the Victoria and Albert + RIBA Drawings Collection and Lloyds of London. Timothy is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He was appointed Inaugural Chair of the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust in 1998, a charity which provides scholarships and bursaries to enable disadvantaged students to study architecture in the United Kingdom, the West Indies and South Africa.
