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GAVIN WATSON FLOCK & STOCK
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Jonathan CooperPark Walk Gallery
20 Park Walk London SW10 0AQt: +44 (0)20 7351 0410
mail@jonathancooper.co.ukwww.jonathancooper.co.uk
GAVIN WATSONFLOCK & STOCK
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1 OUTSIDERS oil on canvas 40 × 40 ins / 101.6 × 101.6 cm £5,800
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Born in Sunderland in 1962, Gavin Watson lives and works in rural Northumberland.
His paintings are inspired by and firmly rooted in this rich and ancient region.
Frequently referred to as the cradle of Christianity in Britain, Northumberland has been
paradoxically characterised throughout its history by both spirituality and terrible violence,
seeing the rise of saints alongside the arrival of invaders by land and sea. An ambiguous
borderland fluctuating between Scotland and England, and often lacking the royal
protection of either, it was subject to long periods of lawlessness, and preyed upon by
reivers from both sides of the border. This turbulent past is evident in its landscape, in
the great castles of Alnwick, Bamburgh, and Dunstaburgh, and in the fortified tower
houses which can still be seen in many villages, including Gavin’s own. Known as Bastle
houses, these thick-walled dwellings provided shelter not only for their owners, who would
retreat to an upper storey reached only by ladders, but also for the animals upon which
their livelihood and survival depended, safely ensconced within the lower floor.
This image of livestock enclosed within a protective yet alien domestic setting has inspired
this series, Flock & Stock, in which Gavin explores the relationship between human and
animal, and the internal and external worlds which we share. From the cantering horse
transformed in a child’s imagination into a mystical unicorn to the wobbly ceramic ducks
which decorated his grandmother’s living room (and so many English homes), these
playful yet multi-layered paintings perfectly capture the essence of both beast and man.
Previously represented by Cricket Hill Gallery, New York, this is the first exhibition of Gavin’s
work in the UK for over 20 years.
GAVIN WATSON
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2 CALL OF THE CHILD oil on canvas 40 × 50 ins / 101.6 × 127 cm £7,800
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3 SALIVATION oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 × 45.7 cm £2,400
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4 NORTHERN SOUL oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 × 45.7 cm £2,400
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5 THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY oil on canvas 50 × 50 ins / 127 × 127 cm £7,500
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6 THE GOLDEN BOUGH-WOW oil on linen 18 × 30 ins / 45.7 × 76.2 cm £3,500
following two spreads
7 EAT, LOVE PREY oil on canvas 20 × 40 ins / 50.8 × 101.6 cm £4,000
8 THE HUNT FOR RED oil on canvas 20 × 40 ins / 50.8 × 101.6 cm £4,000
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9 KNOWING MEEK oil on linen 12 × 14 ins / 30.5 × 35.6 cm
£2,200
10 KNOWING EWEoil on linen 12 × 14 ins / 30.5 × 35.6 cm
£2,200
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11 ESCAPE GOAT oil on canvas 18½ × 26 ins / 47 × 66 cm £3,500
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12 BUCK PASSING oil on canvas 40 × 50 ins / 101.6 × 127 cm £7,800
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13 HIGH NOON oil on canvas 28 × 32 ins / 71.1 × 81.3 cm £4,800
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14 TROTTER oil on linen 14 × 18 ins / 35.6 ×45.7 cm £2,400
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15 WAITING FOR DOGOT oil on canvas 40 × 32 ins / 101.6 × 81.3 cm £5,800
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16 HOME GAME oil on canvas 50 × 50 ins / 127 × 127 cm £7,000
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17 AMERICAN BEAUTY oil on canvas 28 × 32 ins / 71.1 × 81.3 cm £4,800
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18 THE BEAST IN ME oil on canvas 18½ × 26 ins / 47 × 66 cm £3,500
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GAVIN WATSON
1987 Solo Exhibition at Durham Almshouse, UK
1988 Exhibited at Sunderland Museum & Art Gallery, UK (Group Show)
1989 Exhibited at Northern Centre for Contemporary Art, UK (Group Show)
1991/1993/1995/1997/1999/2001
Exhibited in the BP Portrait Award, NPG, London, UK
1992 Awarded Northern Arts Travel Award
1992 Exhibited at Middlesborough Municipal Art Gallery, UK (Group Show)
1992 Grey’s Art Gallery, Hartlepool, UK
2002 Solo Exhibition at Cricket Hill Gallery, NY, USA
2009 Award for Artists, Arts Council, UK
2009 Artists residency at Lerman Trust, Pennsylvania, USA
2013 Awarded Arts Council funded travel in India
2013 Making it Special, Artist Residency Panel Discussion, NY, USA
2014 New Contemporaries at Jonathan Cooper, Park Walk Gallery, London
2015 Exhibited at London Art Fair
Commissions Undertaken
illustrated on front cover
12 HIGH NOON (detail)
illustrated on back cover
14 WAITING FOR DOGOT (detail) Photography by John Donoghue
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Jonathan CooperPark Walk Gallery
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