GX Gallery used to be a bakery during the First World War. You can see the traces of this past as you walk through the rooms: there’s the old dummy waiter, the original ovens, ash stained and dark.
Then it was a framer’s workshop and since then it has morphed into the humble yet excellent gallery it is today. This mixture of young and antique blends perfectly with the collection of Ed Gray paintings currently on display until the 25th of October in honor of his recent book’s, Rock of the Eye: Ed Gray Painter of City Life. The rooms where his art hangs take elements of a thriving city, these businesses built on top of each other; like his paintings, the Gallery brings itself infinitely close to the communities that inspire them. There is no stagnation in Gray’s work, just as there is no stagnation in the GX Gallery.
The Adoration at the Lions’ Den: Matchday at Millwall (Docker’s Stand View) and The Adoration of the Emirates: Matchday at Arsenal (Victory through Harmony)
And there is no doubt Gray’s work despises stagnation. His paintings are full of movement and energy, bursting with people each living in their own distinct way, held together by place, situation. By a person’s shape and angles, one can tell their expression, guess at their history. Though these figures seem distorted, they are more alive than any portrait, no matter how realistic.
Various sketches, all the subjects of which appear in later paintings
This exhibit is exciting as well because of Ed Gray’s recent artistic success. Not five years ago, he was chosen to represent England in the international Fine Art collection for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. This piece, “Gugulethu Strike” is currently on display at the Gallery along with works from his recent exhibition Londonessence: Adoration, “Rock of the Eye” (the painting that provides the title for his book), and “City of London”. Exclusive, limited edition prints of some of his better pieces are also available.
A reproduction of the artist’s studio. Early sketch of City of London on the left
This exhibition is fully aware of Gray’s current status and gives insight into the artist’s process providing examples of early sketches and watercolors of characters later added into the larger paintings. The lower level of the Gallery provides a mock up of Gray’s workspace, with a wall plastered with graphite sketches, early renderings of his work. Talks as well, an opportunity to meet the painter in an intimate setting that will soon be impossible, including one still open this Saturday, the 25th of October, allow a even greater opportunity to understand these vibrant, colorful pieces. Regardless of your reasons, this is an exhibit by an up and coming artist is a wonderful opportunity you shouldn’t miss.
For more information on the GX Gallery, the Ed Gray Rock of the Eye Exhibit, or the talk this Saturday, visit their website at www.gxgallery.com/exhibition/book-launch-rock-eye-ed-gray-painter-city-life
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