William Bradley – Mark me
Following an invitation by 68projects, Bradley worked in Berlin for three months during the early summer of 2016, where he created a cycle of abstract, luminous drawings and paintings.
Bradley explores the formal language and historical roots of abstract expressionism, toying with references from the history of art and artists such as John Hoyland, Sandra Blow and Eduardo Chilida. Against this historical background, he strives to create a formal pictorial language that is accessible and timely. However, in Bradley’s work, it is not the artist’s world that occupies the centre of attention but rather the viewer’s imagination. In his creative process, Bradley turns away from the original, fundamental idea behind abstract art, portraying an “inner world“: he scans his watercolour studies, digitally edits them on his computer, and uses these “digital sketches” as the basis for his paintings. Here artistic style and intuition take a back seat, and chance is abolished, resulting in perfectly planned paintings, which captivate the viewer through their seeming lightness and spontaneity.
Whilst my work continues to look at the painted depiction of painted codes, the new body looks increasingly to Photoshop as a tool for the manipulation of these codes. Digitally modifying the scanned watercolours creates a new plan which moves yet another step away from the immediacy of the original authorial mark. The resultant painting may reference gestural marks or codes from the history of abstraction, but this is coloured by its digital pre-planning. Thus the gestural elements of the work are less about the intuitive use of paint and more a device concerned with the combining of source material and reference.
— William Bradley
We are very pleased to announce the exhibition “MARK ME” by painter William Bradley. Following an invitation by 68projects, Bradley worked in Berlin for three months during the early summer of 2016, where he created a cycle of abstract, luminous drawings and paintings.
Bradley explores the formal language and historical roots of Abstract Expressionism, playing with references from the history of art and the works of artists such as John Hoyland, Sandra Blow and Eduardo Chillida. Against this historical background, he strives to create a formal pictorial language that is both accessible and timely. In Bradley’s work, however, it is not the world of the artist that occupies the centre of attention, but rather the viewer’s imagination.
In his creative process, Bradley turns away from the original, fundamental idea behind abstract art—the portrayal of an “inner world.” He scans his watercolour studies, digitally edits them on his computer, and uses these “digital sketches” as the basis for his paintings. Artistic style and intuition take a back seat and chance is abolished, resulting in perfectly planned paintings that captivate the viewer through their seeming lightness and spontaneity.
Another essential quality of these new works lies in the radiance of the colour palette and the levity of their formal language—a marked change in expression that began when the artist moved to Los Angeles the previous year.
William Bradley studied at Wimbledon College of Arts, London, graduating in 2008. In 2009 he was a finalist, and in 2011 shortlisted for the Catlin Art Prize. In 2014 Bradley was invited to Berlin for a residency with 68projects for the first time. Together with Jennifer Packer and Alexander Kroll, he took part in the inaugural exhibition Roster Crow at the project space. Following an invitation by Hooper Projects in 2015, he has been working in Los Angeles for extended periods of time.
The artist’s works have been shown in numerous solo exhibitions in Europe and the United States. Bradley’s paintings are held in important collections, including the Nelimarkka Museum in Finland, the University of the Arts London collection, the David Roberts Art Foundation, and numerous private collections in Europe, the UK and the US, such as the Susan and Michael Hort Collection in New York and the Gayle and Stanley Hollander Collection in Los Angeles.
William Bradley will be present at the opening on June 11. On Friday, June 10 at 7 pm, you are invited to an exclusive preview and artist talk in the exhibition space, moderated by art historian Julia Rosenbaum. The talk will be given in English.