John Beard, who won the Archibald Portrait prize this year with his grey and waxy painting of Janet Laurence, has a new exhibition at the Liverpool Street Gallery.
At the 'Archies', I thought his portrait of Janet Laurence was a nicely subtle contemplation piece which worked through both its weighty form, narrow tonal spectrum and the quality of its surface.
It was a painting which deserved a 'long look'.
Like peering at a landscape through a daylight fog, the portrait resolved itself slowly at a distance and made more sense up close.
In his current exhibition, the contemplative nature of his work continues.
Once again, it's on (and in) the surface of his paintings where Beard ignites excitement and delivers the most thrills.
These paintings, with their ghostly underpainting appearance, are constructed through a layering of dappled and scumbled waxy paint, giving each picture a vaguely fluid appearance.
Beard, a Welshman who gained his degrees at the University of London and the Royal College of Art, paints 'slow paintings'.
Like fine food, they require time to appreciate and through contemplation, their veil of mystery is lifted to reveal a majestic beauty of both depth and character.
That's why Beard is a 'winner'.
John Beard's 'Decade' exhibition is now showing at the Liverpool Street Gallery.
Images - Liverpool Street Gallery
Above - 'Head self portrait' by John Beard, 2004, 76 x 76cm, oil and wax on linen
Below - 'The gap' by John Beard, 2006, 180 x 250cm, oil and wax on linen
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