Figurative Works by Adrian Wiszniewski

Adrian Wiszniewski made his name as the most versatile and distinctive of the famous New Glasgow Boys who led the revival of figurative painting in Scottish art during the 1980s. Their international standing was confirmed in 1987 with exhibitions worldwide, including the acclaimed Edinburgh Festival exhibition, ‘The Vigorous Imagination’ held at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.

LOT 51 | § ADRIAN WISZNIEWSKI (SCOTTISH B.1958) | BLACK AND BLUE (DIPTYCH)

Signed and dated '96, oil on canvas in two parts | 200cm x 200cm (78.75in x 78.75in), unframed | Sold for £8,125 incl premium

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Wiszniewski’s gift is his fearless versatility. He loves to experiment, explore, surprise. ‘I don’t want to be locked away in the studio. I need to communicate. I love collaboration; working with people with different skills. I learn so much that way.’

LOT 52 | § ADRIAN WISZNIEWSKI (SCOTTISH B.1958) | DOWN AND OUT

Neon and perspex | 152.5cm x 152.5cm (60in x 60in) | Sold for £2,375 incl premium

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We were delighted to present several works by Wiszniewski including two works in neon that celebrate the dynamism of his work in our January 2021 auction entitled 'Modern Scotland' .

LOT 50 | § ADRIAN WISZNIEWSKI (SCOTTISH B.1958) | IF IN DOUBT USE BLACK

Neon and perspex | 61cm x 91cm (24in x 36in) | Sold for £1,875 incl premium

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Wiszniewski started using neon in 1989 as an antidote to his heavily worked canvases and as avery direct means of communicating to a new audience. Duncan Miller comments in his introduction to William Hardie's 1994 exhibition: 'Neon signs are composed of colour and line, the two most basic elements of the language of western painting. In Wiszniewski's neon works colour and line are as completely alive as in any painting, yet they are freed from the burden of artistic 'self-expression' by the way they are reduced to mechanical form. Works like these are a new, technological version of that idealism which links Matisse's paper cut-outs to the neo-classical tradition.'

Auction Information 

MODERN SCOTLAND:

A Private Collection of Scottish Art

Wednesday, 20th January 2021

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Modern Art Department

We are delighted to offer several auctions a year across the UK featuring to Modern British painting, sculpture, prints and drawings. These Modern British art auctions feature works from the likes of Walter Sickert and the Camden Town Group to Terry Frost and the St Ives School, we also handle selected works by all of 20th century Europe’s major figures and movements. This area continues to lead the UK art market and is going from strength to strength.

Learn more about our Modern British Art department ⇒