July 13 – August 7, 2020

Zoom Talk with William Irvine: Wednesday, July 22 at 5pm
The William Irvine Zoom Talk has been recorded and can be viewed on our Youtube Channel

William Irvine: New Explorations

With his new body of work, William Irvine explores the picture plane by shifting it into three parts like a triptych, except the three panels are contained within one canvas. Irvine has always been aware of composition, using it when he paints for balance and strength, and for how it can affect the emotions. This new three-dimensional effect enlivens his picture and gives the viewer a feeling of movement—be it waves or clouds—that elicits a more emotional response. Also included in the show is a selection of porcelain vases painted by Mr. Irvine in collaboration with Blue Hill potter Mark Bell.

Irvine was born in the town of Troon on the Scottish coast. Here he was introduced to modern art through the collection of whiskey magnate Johnnie Walker. After graduating from the Glasgow School of Art and serving in the Scottish army, Irvine came of age in London where he was a part of a lively avant-garde art scene. In 1968, Irvine moved to downeast Maine, and was immediately drawn to the fishing villages of Corea and Jonesport, whose tidy houses reminded him of the white farms dotting the green hills of Scotland. Here, harbors, islands and boats, the sea and the sky, inspired bold work based on a life lived by the sea. Two driving forces fuel his pictorial concepts: abstraction and representation. Irvine brings these antithetical elements into balance with his poetic sensibility and the richness of his textural compositions.