Gated Canyons was the highly anticipated exhibition by acclaimed artist Rachel Jones and the first contemporary solo show in the Gallery’s main exhibition space.
Renowned for her striking use of colour, blending of abstract and figurative motifs and distinctive technique, Jones pushes the boundaries of painting.
Gated Canyons was the first contemporary solo show in our main exhibition space, and featured a compelling new body of work, comprised of large-scale and intimate paintings created with Jones' signature tools of oil stick and oil pastels, alongside selected works from the last seven years of her practice.
Jones has come up with a unique visual language in contemporary painting
The Guardian
Responding to our historic Collection, Jones took Flemish artist Pieter Boel’s Head of a Hound (c. 1660–5) as a starting point for the new series, while drawing on the exaggerated expressions and epic architecture found in cartoons such as Looney Tunes.
These paintings playfully explored how our emotions are reflected back to us through our real-world experiences and environments. They explored how colour, shape and form can engage the senses, evoking instinctive responses that don’t have to be explained or resolved.
