Sartorial Contemporary Art

MARCUS FREEMAN - NEW PAINTINGS
(SEPTEMBER 04 - 25, 2009)

Marcus Freeman's paintings are formal works, in the sense that although the painter is aware the subjects have meaning, his chief concern is simply to create the best image possible. At first sight it's tempting to assume that the artist might be interested in architecture as buildings are the overwhelming subject matter. However, the paintings are really landscape paintings, they just happen to be urban landscapes. Certainly the buildings are exceptionally unremarkable architecturally – in fact they seem chosen as examples utilitarian plainness. This is quite deliberate, as any building of architectural merit or aesthetic interest would steal the show. These buildings are really just convenient, solid, immoveable objects through which to explore formal questions about the representation of three dimensional objects on canvas: how the arrangement of the few visual elements – the solid surfaces and the light and shadow – combine to describe form and create atmosphere with the greatest economy possible.

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MARCUS FREEMAN - 4 X 4
(AUGUST 07 - 30, 2008)

4 x 4 was conceived by artist and curator Harry Pye with four aims in mind:

1: To give four artists complete freedom to exhibit whatever they like.
2: To match each artist with a highly respected art critic/journalist willing to write 444 words about them.
3: To make a Ltd edition package of four A4 prints (one from each artist) for only £44.44
4: To have four great opening nights in August, drink lots of Brahma Beer, and have fun.

Harry Pye says: ‘I am absolutely delighted that Sartorial's Director Gretta Sarfaty Marchant, the head of Flame Creative Solutions Julian Lovatt, Immprint's co-director Keith Sargent, and Nic Rider of Brahma have given their support and been willing to help turn this idea into an exciting reality. The only thing the four artists have in common is that they make work that is more than worthy of your attention. I hope each show will be an extra ray of sunshine this summer.'

Art critic Jessica Lack writes that ‘Freeman's paintings emulate that contradiction between clarity and atmosphere'. It would not be difficult to make the canvases more atmospheric, but that would nearly always upset this balance. Peeling paint, thunderous skies and rusty iron are beautiful but imprecise elements. As it is, Freeman can measure the contribution each element makes towards these twin aims – clarity and atmosphere – having drawn not just dozens but often many hundreds of permutations.

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2009 Sartorial Contemporary Art