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Lawrie Quigley is an eclectic painter, but through his various subjects runs a powerful, obsessive thread. For him, the skin of the world, the first level we encounter, is a mere illusion - a sham, full of flattery and pretence. This is why so much of his work is performance or literature related and inspired. His paintings suggest modern day allegories or narratives which seem to allude to more timeless or universal themes relating to the human condition. The artist allows spectators backstage to look behind the masks and eavesdrop on what the audience cannot see or hear… or catch a glimpse into a magical world inhabited by dolls, humans, and other misfit beings - all engaged in some kind of carnivalesque ritual, seemingly acting out the scenes and dramas that echo human experience and behaviour. Have we stumbled across a group of circus characters, unobserved? Or are we lost, locked in a toyshop at night? Issues of gender, identity, childhood, sexuality, religion, and power are translated into pictorial metaphors concerned, essentially, in creating a pervading sense of atmosphere and mood.
Quigley has made good use of history: Goya and Picasso have contributed their black humour and menacing sense of play. Balthus and Rego also come to mind, as the paintings exude a disconcerting air of intrigue and tension - Bomberg's passionate brushstrokes are there too, particularly in his energetic and painterly landscapes. There is a strong rigour of compositional structure in his paintings which adds both weight and presence to the work, and his use of light and shadow imbue an emotional ambience of ambiguity and unease. We are plunged into a mysterious, dramatic, and often threatening environment, armed only with an incomplete guide book. Whom should we trust? Which direction should we take?
Oliver Bevan.
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the artists'
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Bolt from the Blue
150cms X 90cms
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Brides
220cms x 150cms
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Card Game
75cms x 55cms
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Dancing pantomime horses
150cms x 110cms
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Only Fools and horses
210cms x 180cms
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Paper Aeroplane
180cms x 135cms
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Pirate and Ballerinas
90cms x 60cms
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Romeo and Juliet
120cms x 75cms
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Strange Group
75cms x 75cms
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The Birthday
190cms x 180cms
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The Chastisement
190cms x 150cms
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The Giant Mermaid
130cms x 90cms
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The Wedding
190cms x 180cms
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Two Menwomen walking on a beach
100cms x 70cms
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World upside down
100cms x 75cms
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Yellow Yo-Yo
70cms x 50cms
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Dungeness view fading light
70cms x 50cms
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Dungeness view hot afternoon
75cms x 50cms
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Piccadilly Circus 1
30cms x 20cms
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Piccadilly Circus 2
30cms x 20cms
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Scarborough coastline after rain
50cms x 30cms
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Scarborough coastline rough sea
50cms by30 cms
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View from Rye Harbour
30cms x 22cms
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View from Sutton Bank twilight
70cms x 35cms
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View of Yorkshire Moors
80cms x 60cms
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View towards Canary Wharf
75cms by 40cms
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Welsh Landscape - hot afternoon
20cms x 12cms
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Welsh Landscape - spring morning
25cms by 18cms
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Welsh Landscape - sunrise
50cms x 25cms
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Backstage
90cms x 65cms
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Theater Study 4
25cms x 18cms
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Theatre study 1
30cms x 20cms
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Theatre study 2
30cms x 20cms
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