Resistance and Persistence is a group exhibition at the Ingleby Gallery, which takes its title from Sean Scully's essay on the mid-20th-century Italian painter Giorgio Morandi.
Scully’s abstract oil painting 'Untitled (Doric)' is one of the highlights of this show, and will be instantly recognisable to anyone familiar with his work.
I admire this piece because it is imperfect. You can see each brushstroke, you can see each colour merging with the next. And that for me is what makes it so appealing.
Another highlight is 'Three Verticals at Approximately 30 second intervals, Saltburn-by -the Sea, Jan 3, 2015. 11.22-11.24am' by Richard Forster.
I first encountered Forster whilst working at Leeds Art Gallery, where he had been shortlisted for the 2008 Northern Art Prize.
I remember how his meticulous graphite drawings would confuse every visitor, each of whom swore that they were looking at photographs and couldn’t understand why he had been nominated for a prize.
The work on display here is exceptional for the attention and detail given to such an ordinary scene. Foster is an artist dedicated to his craft, and one can only imagine how much time he gives to each individual work.—Rhys Fullerton
Resistance and Persistence continues until 30 January 2016 at the Ingleby Gallery (15 Calton Road). Admission free.
[Photo credits from top to bottom: Sean Scully, ‘Untitled (Doric)’, 2015, oil on linen, 71.1 x 81.3 cm. Courtesy of the Artist and Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh; Richard Forster, ‘Three Verticals at Approximately 30 second intervals, Saltburn -by -the Sea, Jan 3, 2015. 11.22-11.24am’, 2015, graphite and acrylic medium on Fabriano Artistico paper, three parts 45 x 30 cm page size (each part), 49 x 34 cm framed (each part). Courtesy of the Artist and Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh; Installation views of the exhibition Resistance and Persistence, Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh. Courtesy of Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh.]