thinking bodies

Graham Dean

April 11 — April 22, 2013
Triumph gallery

Graham Dean is well known in the UK and abroad. His works have been exhibited at the most prestigious art fairs in the world, including FIAC in Paris, TEFAF Maastricht in the Netherlands and Basel Art Fair and are in the collections of Contemporary Arts Society, Arts Council, V&A Museum, National Gallery of Jamaica, Forbes Foundation (New York), Glasgow Museum of Modern Art, Ferens Museum and Art Gallery, Hull Ferens Museum and Art Gallery, Hull. Dean is also successfully working with book graphics — his illustrations were included in the books by Roald Dahl.

Graham Dean’s works are distinguished by bright colors, contrast, and layering. The artist changed his approach to the traditional use of watercolor, calling his innovative technology "reverse archaeology." Dean uses thick handmade paper made from "hadi", a fabric obtained from the processing of T-shirts in Kerala (South India). Painting the paper in bright contrasting colors, he tears it apart and assembles the final composition from various pieces, superimposing them one on top of the other in layers like the human epidermis.

Blue Mirror 2
2009
Watercolor, handmade Indian paper made from recycled textiles
98 × 112 cm

Graham Dean’s works are distinguished by bright colors, contrast, and layering. The artist changed his approach to the traditional use of watercolor, calling his innovative technology "reverse archaeology." Dean uses thick handmade paper made from "hadi", a fabric obtained from the processing of T-shirts in Kerala (South India). Painting the paper in bright contrasting colors, he tears it apart and assembles the final composition from various pieces, superimposing them one on top of the other in layers like the human epidermis.

At his first exhibition in Russia, Graham Dean will present a series of works from the projects "White Noise", "Sleepers", and "Swimmer", which continue to explore the relationship between humans and their inner worlds. The works from the "White Noise" project aim to illustrate how continuous sound, bright light, and the movement of the city can affect individuals, and how being outside of it can provide a sense of rest and renewal. The works from the "Sleepers" project explore our relationship with sleep, including our dreams and insomnia.

Since the 1980s, Dean has been working primarily in watercolor and has focused on the interaction between paint, water, and paper. By adding various dyes and pigments, the artist creates oxidizing, crystallizing, and luminous images.