George Dunne - Introduction

Introduction

Born in Dublin, George is a European painter.  From Irish, Cornish and Breton Stock, he can call on a rich tradition of North European angst.  Soutine is mentioned when people talk of influences, but the artist himself would consider Egon Schiele or George Rouault nearer the truth.

Perhaps George is described best by Gerald Davis, gallery owner, writer and art correspondent: “His work exhibits a mastery that I have only seen previously in the work of the late Jonathan Wade.  Allied to a quirky choice of subjects, he gives us a series of idiosyncratic tableaux of enduring fascination.  George is above all a committed artist, he paints because he has to and, when we look at his work we see not a sophisticated distillation of multiplicity of styles of contemporary art, but a direct response to his own struggle with life and his attempt to understand it.  It is this deeply felt involvement with painting and life that makes such work as this an important part of the exciting renaissance in Irish Art through which we are privileged to be living”.

Introduccion

George es un pintor Europeo, natural de Dublin.  Su origin Irlandes, Breton y de Cornualles le permiten invocar la rica tradicion de congoja Nor-Europea.  Cuando se habla de influencias, la gente menciona a Soutine, pero el propio artista considera que Egon Schiele o George Rouault se acercan mas a la vardad.

La ‘condicion humana’ y su observacion son el campo que el artista domina.  El desespero, la fatiga y la brutalidad de la vida son elementos fuertemente representados en el trabajo de George.

Gerald Davis, proprietario de una galleria de arte, escritor y corresponsal de arte, es quizas quien mejor le describe: “Su trabajo expone un dominio del medio que solo he visto antes en el trabajo del fallecido Jonathan Wade.  Utilizando una seleccion capriciosa de tamas, nos ofrece una serie de cuadros idiosincraticos uqe nos fascinan de forma permanente.  Sobre todo, George es un artista comprometido, que pinta porque tiene que pintar, cuando miramos su trabajo, no vemos una ‘sofistticada’ multiplicidad de estilos contemporaneos destilados, sino una respuesta directa a su lucha con la vida y sus intentos de comprenderla.  Este profundo compromiso con la pintura y la vida es lo que convierte este trabajo en una parte importante del apasionante renacimiento del arte Irlandes, en el cual tenemos el privilegio de vivir”.

Introduction

Ne a Dublin, George est un peintre europeen. D’origine irelandaise, cornouaillaise et bretonne, il peut faire appel a une riche tradition d’anxiete commune aux peuples du nord de l’Europe.  Le nom de Soutine est mentionne quand on parle d’influences, mais l’artiste lui-meme considererait Egon Shiele ou George Rouault comme etant plus pres de la verite.  La condition humaine et l’observation de celle-ci representent le domaine de l’artist.  Le desespoir, la lassitude et la brutalite de la vie sont des themes recourants dans l’ouvre de George.

Il est peut-etre le mieux defini par les remarques de Gerald Davis, proprietaire d’une galerie, ecrivain et critique d’art: “son ouvre fait preuve d’une maitrise des moyens d’expression de l’artiste que je n’ai rencontre auparavant que dans l’ouvre du regrete Jonathan Wade.  Associe a un choix original de sujets, il nous donne une series de tableaux tres particuliers et qui nous donne ube series de tableaux tres particuliers et qui nous fascinent a l’extreme.  George est avant tout un artiste dedie a satache, il peint parce qu’il doit peindre et quand nous examinons son ouvre, nous ne nous trouvons pas face a une distillation ‘sophistiquee’ de la multiplicite des styles d’art contmeporain, mais face a une reponse directe a son propre combat avec la vie et sa volonte d’en comprendre le sens.  C’est cette profonde interaction de la peintre et de la vie qui fait qu’une telle oeuvre est partie integrante de la renaissance de l’art irlandais, époque a laquelle nos sommes privilegies de vivre”.

George Dunne - Biography

George Dunne though born in Dublin, has always seemed more European than Irish.  Admitting that he felt an outsider in his own city’s artistic circle, George says his admiration was for European art (notably Italian) and Artists.

When asked his view of life, George admits he sees things through pessimistic eyes, fascinated by the darker, gloomier side of people and it is this aspect of humanity, which has become the soul of many of his most inventive and diverse paintings.

It is axiomatic that an artist’s work should speak for itself.  We either like or dislike it for its own sake.  We are attracted or repelled by his subject matter, colours, manner of treatment and, hopefully, if we like it we buy it.  That is the raison d’etre for the gallery system - it provides a show-place for the artist to exhibit and sell his work. In a very special way, George Dunne is a maverick - he is a man who likes to work outside the system. 

He started life in working class Dublin and had, according to himself, a ‘poor’ education.  He has spent a large part of his life as a journeyman craftsman.  He was apprenticed to the brassfounders trade, in which he was involved for several years, ran his own construction business and, like so many others of his generation, took the emigrant ship.  He returned to Ireland in the late seventies and now, in his mid sixties lives in the Merrion Square area of Dublin with his wife.

From his late teens George Dunne interested himself in art.  Because of his trade his early forays into creativity were in the field of metal sculpture and the eventual changeover to two dimensional work was largely dictated by pragmatics: “it isn’t very practical to make sculpture in a flat”.  He first painted in watercolour, gaining a mastery over form and colour in this most demanding of media.  He later experimented with oils and acrylics, eventually settling for the latter as providing the type of end-product he wished to achieve.  His present works exhibit a mastery of this medium that I have only seen previously in the work of the late – and much lamented – Jonathan Wade.  George’s ability to use acrylic paint with total conviction shows a rare talent.  He can exploit its qualities of opacity and transparency, thinness and impasto with the confidence of a practitioner who is thoroughly schooled in techniques of watercolour and oil painting.  Allied to a quirky choice of subject, he gives us a series of idiosyncratic tableaux of enduring fascination.

Dunne is, above all, a committed artist.  He paints because he has to and, when we look at his work we see, not a “sophisticated” distillation of multiplicity of styles of contemporary art, but a direct response to his own struggle with life and the attempt to understand it.  It is this deeply felt involvement with painting and life that makes such work as this an important part of the exciting renaissance in Irish Art through which we are privileged to be living.