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⚫ '''Simon Gales''' is a contemporary representational artist and painter of limited output who destroys much of his work. He exhibits mainly in London and lives in France.
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⚫ }}
⚫ '''Simon Gales''' (born 1964) is a contemporary British artist and painter of limited output who destroys much of his work. He exhibits mainly in London and France.


==Biography== ==Life and work==
Simon Gales was born in ] in 1964 and graduated from ] in 1988 achieving the joint highest 1st degree in a year that included most of the prominent YBAs including Gary Hume, Michael Landy and Ian Davenport.<ref name=WhosWho>{{cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=MtMzAQAAIAAJ&q=simon+gales&dq=simon+gales&hl=en&ei=QziGTaKNH4jQsAOl4-3uAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC8Q6AEwADgK|title=Who's Who in Art|author=Charles Baile de Laperriere|year=2004|publisher=Hilmarton Manor Press|edition=31st|isbn=978-0-904722-39-0}}</ref> Six works from his degree show were selected along with 25 others across the nation to be auctioned at the Royal College of Art by ] the following year.<ref name="Christies">{{cite web|url=http://openlibrary.org/books/OL18772989M/Christie's_new_contemporaries|title=Christies New Contemporaries|author=Christies|year=1989|publisher=Christies|edition=Open Library,catalogue}}</ref> The first auction of new contemporaries by a major auction house attracted media attention and Gales's works were featured in the Telegraph Weekend Colour Supplement as well as the BBC 1 o'clock news;<ref>Burroughs, Andrew."New Art, Christies". BBC 1 O'Clock News, 1989, 9, 3.</ref><ref>Cork, Richard. "Collecting : New Art Goes Under The Hammer". The Daily Telegraph Weekend Magazine,1989, 11, 3.</ref> the auction surpassed expectations making an astonishing £1/4 million, Gales's selling for over 4 times the estimate.<ref>Norman, Geraldine. "Art Market : An Experimental Sale.." The Independent,1989, 16, 3.</ref> This led Gales to be commissioned by London Transport for whom he painted «Childhood» a painting London Underground used to publicise the ] at Bethnal Green by making 6000 full sized posters of the image for underground stations with a further 3000 smaller ones for the escalators.<ref name="Childhood">{{cite web|url=http://www.ltmcollection.org/posters/artist/artist.html?IXartist=Simon+Gales|title=Childhood|author=Simon Gales|year=1990|publisher=London Transport Museum Collection}}</ref> Simon Gales was born in ], ] in 1964.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://suffolkartists.co.uk/index.cgi?choice=painter&pid=1776#:~:text=Simon%20was%20a%20pupil%20at,artists%20such%20as%20Gary%20Hume%20( |title=GALES, Simon |publisher=suffolkartists.co.uk |access-date=8 July 2023}}</ref> He studied art at ] under ] and achieved the joint highest mark graduating alongside ] and ] in the YBA year of 1988.<ref name=WhosWho>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bsRPAAAAMAAJ&q=simon+gales|title=Who's Who in Art|author=Art Trade Press,Gale Group|year=2002|publisher=Hilmarton Manor Press|edition=30th|isbn=978-0-900083-19-8}}</ref> The following year he was selected as one of 25 'Christies New Contemporaries' that included ] and ] in a highly publicised show at the ] where six works from his degree show were to be auctioned by ] in what was to be the first auction of young contemporary artists by a major auction house.<ref name="Christie's">{{cite book |title=Christie's New Contemporaries|author=Christie's|year=1989|publisher=Christie's|edition=Open Library,catalogue|ol = 18772989M}}</ref> The show attracted media attention and his work was featured in the '']'' as well as the '']'';<ref>Burroughs, Andrew."New Art, Christie's". BBC 1 O'Clock News, 1989, 9, 3.</ref><ref>Cork, Richard. "Collecting : New Art Goes Under The Hammer". The Daily Telegraph Weekend Magazine,1989, 11, 3.</ref> the auction surpassed expectations making £500,000 with Gales's selling for over four times the estimate.<ref>Norman, Geraldine. "Art Market: An Experimental Sale.." The Independent,1989, 16, 3.</ref> This led him to be commissioned by ] for which he painted ''Childhood'' a painting ] used to publicise the ] at Bethnal Green. 6,000 full sized posters were printed for underground stations with a further 3,000 smaller ones for the escalators.<ref name="Childhood">{{cite web|url=http://www.ltmcollection.org/posters/artist/artist.html?IXartist=Simon+Gales|title=Childhood|author=Simon Gales|year=1990|publisher=London Transport Museum Collection}}</ref>


Despite being one of the few representational graduates from Goldsmiths, he was included in a number of largely conceptual exhibitions such as « A Spiritual Dimension » in 1989, a major touring exhibition organised by ] along with Goldsmiths tutors Brian Falconbridge, Michael Kenny and Carl Plackman and including Craigie Aitcheson, Tess Jaray and Bob Law and supported by works from the ] as well as that of the Royal Academy.<ref name=Show>{{cite news|title=A Spiritual Dimension|publisher=Wolsey Art Gallery Visualarts-Ipswich|date=January,1990|url=http://www.visualarts-ipswich.org.uk/ar''Italic text''chive/level2/1990/a_spiritual_dimension.asp|access date=2009}}</ref> Due to the small scale of Gales’s works at this time, he was invited again from 1991-2 to join Craigie Aitcheson in another touring exhibition this time curated by Gillian Jason called « Cabinet Paintings » which also included Frank Auerbach, Howard Hodgekin, Euan Uglow and Sarah Raphael. Gales's early metaphysical works incited him to be included in a number of largely conceptual exhibitions such as ''A Spiritual Dimension'' in 1989, a major touring exhibition organised by ] along with former Goldsmiths tutors Brian Falconbridge, ] and Carl Plackman and including ], ] and ] and supported by works from the ] as well as that of the Royal Academy.<ref name="A Spiritual Dimension">{{cite book|url=http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/library/search-30830/search/title:a-spiritual-dimension|title=A Spiritual Dimension|publisher=Peterborough Museum & Art Gallery|date=1989|isbn=0905248015}}</ref> Due to the small scale of Gales's works at this time, he was invited again from 1991–1992 to show with Craigie Aitchison in another touring exhibition which was curated by Gillian Jason called ''Cabinet Paintings'' which also included ], ], ] and ].


Gales had a series of solo exhibitions at The Bruton Street Gallery in Mayfair in 1999, 2001 which sold out and again in 2003 at which point the gallery closed down. He showed at The Albemarle Gallery in 2008 before moving to Jonathan Cooper in 2009 with whom he has remained. Gales had a series of solo and joint exhibitions notably at the Jill George Gallery in 1990 and later at The Bruton Street Gallery, London in 1999, 2001 which sold out and again in 2003 at which point the gallery closed down.


Gales's interest in ] was due to the influence of initial tutorials with Jon Thompson at Goldsmiths, particularly in regards to the role of intuition. "He put into my head that an extra dimension could be explored beneath the surface of a subject."<ref>Turps Banana Art Magazine 'Simon Gales a rush hour conversation with Turps Banana' (Issue 16) Spring 2016 ISSN 1749-3994.</ref> This resulted in a long series of metaphysical paintings that have more recently undergone some radical changes from spare, singular, kinetic images of varying focus through to carefully designed minimal works bordering on abstraction. These latter pieces are often painted on rectangular panels, the smaller one attached as if floating in front of the larger, casting real shadows that constantly change according to the light. These shadows interplay with the painted image so that the painting becomes a physical reality in the space of the spectator.<ref>Turps Banana Art Magazine 'Simon Gales a rush hour conversation with Turps Banana' (Issue 16) Spring 2016 ISSN 1749-3994.</ref>
Gales has often referred to himself as an image maker, his priority being the power of the single image presented as a frozen moment or simple statement. Latterly he has produced a series of works called Focus/Unfocus in which the varying focus within the images is aimed to alter their perception.<ref name=Focus>{{cite press release|title=Simon Gales Focus/Unfocus|publisher= Jonathan Cooper|date=27,10,2010|url=http://jonathancooper.co.uk/parkwalk/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=17721&g2_GALLERYSID=83b3809eed5b702ce5e396262916566b|access date=27,10,2010}}</ref> The series was exhibited in London at Jonathan Cooper, Park Walk Gallery in February 2011.


== Description of his works ==
''Selected exhibitions''
{{Cquote| ... A single colour that continues from the first panel onto the one behind, a step down of no more than half a centimetre, can be of a different light or tone purely as a result of a slight difference in distance from the eye so that the work becomes, in varying degrees, kinetic}}
* Focus Unfocus <small>- Jonathan Cooper – London 2011</small>

* Art Chicago <small>– Jonathan Cooper Fine Art – Chicago, USA 2010</small>
He talks about his fascination with greys that is evident in the scull painting.
* Albemarle Gallery <small>- Simon Gales - Albemarle Gallery - London 2008</small>
{{Cquote|Banal colours such as digital greys can be sublime and there is something so 21st century about them, very minimal, very contemporary, hence my reluctance to use any shade that resembles black.}}<ref name="Turps Banana Painting Magazine">{{cite journal|url=http://balticplus.uk/turps-banana-painting-magazine-issue-16-c28223/|title=Turps Banana Painting Magazine|journal=Turps Banana|publisher=Marcus Harvey & Phil King|date=2016|issn=1749-3994}}</ref>
* 10th Anniversary Show <small>- Albemarle Gallery - London 2006</small>

* The Bruton Steet Gallery <small>- Solo Exhibitions - London 1999 – 2001 - 2003</small>
==Museum, public gallery, project space summary==
* Ten British Artists <small>- Waterman Fine Art - London 1995</small>
* ''États d’âmes'' 2022 10 years retrospective of the FDAC Collection, ], France
* Cabinet Paintings <small>- Touring Exhibition - London 1991 - 92</small>
* ''Simon Gales Off Limits'' 2019 (The Factory exhibition space, Factory Fifteen):- The Factory, London
* Christies <small>- Modern Art Since 1945 - Auction- London 1991</small>
* ''Les Ambassadeurs'' 2019 (with Jane Harris and Jiri Kratochvil, Espace d'Art Contemporain L'Artboretum):- Moulin du Rabois, Argenton sur Creuse, France
* Los Angeles International Art Fair <small>- Jill George Gallery - Los Angeles, USA 1990</small>
* ''Alive In The Universe'' 2019 (1 minute films, Caroline Wiseman Modern & Contemporary):- Palazzo Pesaro Papafava, ]
* Suspending The Time <small>- Simon Gales & Brian Falconbridge - Jill George Gallery, London 1990</small>
* ''FDAC Collection 2018'' 2019 (Fonds Departmental d'Art Contemporain):- Espace Culturel François Mitterrand, Périgueux, France
* Christies <small>- New Contemporaries - Auction - The Royal College Of Art, London 1989</small>
* ''Cabinet Paintings'' 1991-92 (Gillian Jason Gallery, London):- ], Sussex;<ref name=Cabinetpaintings>{{cite book|title=Cabinet Paintings|publisher=Gillian Jason Gallery|date=1990|oclc = 272556890}}</ref> ], Swansea, Wales
* A Spiritual Dimension <small>- Touring Show Of UK - Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery 1988 - 89</small>
* ''Childhood'' 1991 (London Underground, ], London):- ]
* New Realists <small>- Berkeley Square Gallery - London 1988</small>
* ''A Spiritual Dimension'' 1989-90 (Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery, Arts Council):<ref>Dr August K Wiedmann 'A Spiritual Dimension' published by Peterborough City Council 1989 {{ISBN|0905248015}}.</ref>- ];<ref name=WiedmannAugust>{{cite web|url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/24069244?selectedversion=NBD24685010|title=A Spiritual Dimension|publisher=Peterborough City Council|date=1989}}</ref> ], Coventry; ]; Winchester Gallery, ]; Wolsey Gallery, ],<ref name=Wolsey>{{cite web|url=http://www.visualarts-ipswich.org.uk/archive/level2/1990/a_spiritual_dimension.asp|title=A Spiritual Dimension|publisher=Visual Arts Ipswich|date=1990|url-status=bot: unknown|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20070805001202/http://www.visualarts-ipswich.org.uk/archive/level2/1990/a_spiritual_dimension.asp|archivedate=2007-08-05}}</ref> Ipswich; ],Gateshead
* ''Christie's New Contemporaries'' 1989 (Christie's):- ], London


==References== ==References==
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==External links== ==External links==
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|SHORT DESCRIPTION=British contemporary artist
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|DATE OF BIRTH=1964
|PLACE OF BIRTH=Suffolk
|DATE OF DEATH=
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Latest revision as of 08:52, 23 May 2024

Simon Gales
Born1964 (age 59–60)
Polstead, Suffolk, England
Alma materGoldsmiths, University of London
Known forPainting

Simon Gales (born 1964) is a contemporary British artist and painter of limited output who destroys much of his work. He exhibits mainly in London and France.

Life and work

Simon Gales was born in Polstead, Suffolk in 1964. He studied art at Goldsmiths College under Jon Thompson and achieved the joint highest mark graduating alongside Gary Hume and Ian Davenport in the YBA year of 1988. The following year he was selected as one of 25 'Christies New Contemporaries' that included Mark Francis and Glenn Brown in a highly publicised show at the Royal College of Art where six works from his degree show were to be auctioned by Christie's in what was to be the first auction of young contemporary artists by a major auction house. The show attracted media attention and his work was featured in the Telegraph Weekend Colour Supplement as well as the BBC 1 O'Clock News; the auction surpassed expectations making £500,000 with Gales's selling for over four times the estimate. This led him to be commissioned by London Transport for which he painted Childhood a painting London Underground used to publicise the V&A Museum of Childhood at Bethnal Green. 6,000 full sized posters were printed for underground stations with a further 3,000 smaller ones for the escalators.

Gales's early metaphysical works incited him to be included in a number of largely conceptual exhibitions such as A Spiritual Dimension in 1989, a major touring exhibition organised by Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery along with former Goldsmiths tutors Brian Falconbridge, Michael Kenny and Carl Plackman and including Craigie Aitchison, Tess Jaray and Bob Law and supported by works from the Arts Council Collection as well as that of the Royal Academy. Due to the small scale of Gales's works at this time, he was invited again from 1991–1992 to show with Craigie Aitchison in another touring exhibition which was curated by Gillian Jason called Cabinet Paintings which also included Frank Auerbach, Howard Hodgkin, Euan Uglow and Sarah Raphael.

Gales had a series of solo and joint exhibitions notably at the Jill George Gallery in 1990 and later at The Bruton Street Gallery, London in 1999, 2001 which sold out and again in 2003 at which point the gallery closed down.

Gales's interest in metaphysics was due to the influence of initial tutorials with Jon Thompson at Goldsmiths, particularly in regards to the role of intuition. "He put into my head that an extra dimension could be explored beneath the surface of a subject." This resulted in a long series of metaphysical paintings that have more recently undergone some radical changes from spare, singular, kinetic images of varying focus through to carefully designed minimal works bordering on abstraction. These latter pieces are often painted on rectangular panels, the smaller one attached as if floating in front of the larger, casting real shadows that constantly change according to the light. These shadows interplay with the painted image so that the painting becomes a physical reality in the space of the spectator.

Description of his works

... A single colour that continues from the first panel onto the one behind, a step down of no more than half a centimetre, can be of a different light or tone purely as a result of a slight difference in distance from the eye so that the work becomes, in varying degrees, kinetic

He talks about his fascination with greys that is evident in the scull painting.

Banal colours such as digital greys can be sublime and there is something so 21st century about them, very minimal, very contemporary, hence my reluctance to use any shade that resembles black.

Museum, public gallery, project space summary

References

  1. "GALES, Simon". suffolkartists.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  2. Art Trade Press,Gale Group (2002). Who's Who in Art (30th ed.). Hilmarton Manor Press. ISBN 978-0-900083-19-8.
  3. Christie's (1989). Christie's New Contemporaries (Open Library,catalogue ed.). Christie's. OL 18772989M.
  4. Burroughs, Andrew."New Art, Christie's". BBC 1 O'Clock News, 1989, 9, 3.
  5. Cork, Richard. "Collecting : New Art Goes Under The Hammer". The Daily Telegraph Weekend Magazine,1989, 11, 3.
  6. Norman, Geraldine. "Art Market: An Experimental Sale.." The Independent,1989, 16, 3.
  7. Simon Gales (1990). "Childhood". London Transport Museum Collection.
  8. A Spiritual Dimension. Peterborough Museum & Art Gallery. 1989. ISBN 0905248015.
  9. Turps Banana Art Magazine 'Simon Gales a rush hour conversation with Turps Banana' (Issue 16) Spring 2016 ISSN 1749-3994.
  10. Turps Banana Art Magazine 'Simon Gales a rush hour conversation with Turps Banana' (Issue 16) Spring 2016 ISSN 1749-3994.
  11. "Turps Banana Painting Magazine". Turps Banana. Marcus Harvey & Phil King. 2016. ISSN 1749-3994.
  12. Cabinet Paintings. Gillian Jason Gallery. 1990. OCLC 272556890.
  13. Dr August K Wiedmann 'A Spiritual Dimension' published by Peterborough City Council 1989 ISBN 0905248015.
  14. "A Spiritual Dimension". Peterborough City Council. 1989.
  15. "A Spiritual Dimension". Visual Arts Ipswich. 1990. Archived from the original on 5 August 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

External links

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