Lot 189
KEN CURRIE (SCOTTISH B.1960) §
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
Modern British and Contemporary Art
Auction: 17 January 2018 at 11:00 GMT
Description
1995-1996, signed, inscribed with title and dated verso, oil on canvas
Dimensions
100cm x 78cm (39.5in x 30.75in)
Footnote
Provenance: Raab Boukamel Gallery, London, purchased by the current owner, 1996
Literature: Ken Currie, Details of a Journey, Tom Normand, Lund Humphries 2002, illustrated page 83
Note: Born in 1960 Ken Currie is a Scottish artist and was one of the New Glasgow Boys along with his contemporaries Peter Howson, Adrian Wisniewski and Steven Campbell. Graduating from the Glasgow School of Art in 1983, his work has appeared in several public collections including the Tate Modern in London, the National Galleries of Scotland and abroad. In 2013 Currie held a solo show at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. His paintings are documents of the human body and the effects of time, greed and injury. Signs and Symptoms 1995-6 is a dark, confrontational work. The figure is painted with a ghostly luminosity which is heightened by the stark dark background. Currie is highly aware of and influenced by the tradition of Western art, drawing inspiration from a variety of artists including Goya and Velazquez. Similarly to Francis Bacon, he is fascinated by the human face as a mechanism of expressing trauma, pain and powerful psychological expression. Currie's masterful portrait draws the viewer in with its thought provoking qualities.
