Loose Ends

Basil Beattie (1935 - )

Oil and wax on cotton duck

1998

Share this:

© Basil Beattie

License this image

Image of Loose Ends
  • About the work
    Basil Beattie’s painting hovers between abstraction and representation. The composition suggests a series of tunnels and corridors which appear to lead nowhere, resulting in an image which focuses our attention on the surface of the painting itself. In his work, Beattie often depicts forms such as doorways, corridors and archways – motifs which are intentionally  ambiguous, and which allow the artist  to explore the theme of escape. The title, ‘Loose Ends’, similarly reiterates the theme of tunnels and corridors, inviting us into an imaginary, undefinable space.
  • About the artist
    Born in West Hartlepool, Basil Beattie graduated from the Royal Academy schools in 1961, and was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 2006. Beattie was a pioneer of a new approach to painting in post-war Britain, having been significantly influenced by ‘The New American Painting’ show at the Tate in 1959, in particular the works of Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman. Over a sixty-year career, Beattie has remained part of a set of British artists whose works continue the legacy of Abstract Expressionism. He has exhibited widely in the UK since the 1960s and taught at Goldsmiths College in London in the 1980s and ‘90s. Beattie lives and works in Mitcham, Surrey.
  • Explore
  • Details
    Title
    Loose Ends
    Date
    1998
    Medium
    Oil and wax on cotton duck
    Dimensions
    height: 213.50 cm, width: 198.20 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from the artist, November 2000
    Inscription
    verso, on canvas: Basil Beattie / Loose Ends - 1998 - 7 x 6'6" / Oil & Wax; verso, on stretcher: LOOSE ENDS / 1998 / BASIL BEATTIE / LOOSE ENDS / OIL & WAX
    Provenance
    the artist
    GAC number
    17516