Gurnos [Going for Messages]

André Stitt (1958 - )

acrylic on panel

2021
  • About the work
    Location
    Country: UK
    City: Wales
    Place: Cardiff, Cardiff Hub
    This painting references the Gurnos estate in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. Another work in the Collection by the same artist offers a similar style of composition that references the artist’s childhood home on the Seymour Hill estate in South Belfast. Both estates are examples of the post-war brutalist social housing which was built at that time across the UK. The architecture of these estates divided opinion and was associated with dilapidation and crime. Stitt draws on the structures of architectural blueprints to consider a retro-future for these places – bright and angular shapes float in front of weathered backgrounds. Their composition and finish indicate rebuilding and renewal. Central to Stitt’s practice is the theme of communities and their dissolution. In the contested space of the post-war housing estate his paintings allude to hope and possibility.
  • About the artist
    André Stitt was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He studied at Ulster Polytechnic, and the Belfast College of Art and Design at Ulster University from 1976-1980. He is currently professor of fine art at Cardiff School of Art and Design, Cardiff Metropolitan University, and a fellow of the Royal Society of Art. Solo exhibitions of his work have been held most recently at institutions including Leeds College of Art Gallery and Oriel Myrddin Gallery, Carmarthen, Wales (both 2013); St David’s Hall, Cardiff; and St Paul st Gallery Auckland, New Zealand (2011) Stitt's work has also been included in exhibitions at Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool (2012); Bangkok Art & Culture Centre, Thailand (2008); Galerie Lehtinen, Berlin (2011); Venice Biennale; Baltic Contemporary Art Centre, England (both 2005); and PS1, New York (2000).
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  • Details
    Title
    Gurnos [Going for Messages]
    Date
    2021
    Medium
    acrylic on panel
    Dimensions
    height: 45.0 cm; width: 65.0 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from Gallery TEN, March 2022
    Provenance
    Gallery TEN, Cardiff; from whom purchased by UK Government Art Collection, 28 March 2022
    GAC number
    19047