Artist Peter Doig’s “serene, fantastical paintings feature kaleidoscope landscapes, punctuated by enigmatic, partially obscured figures”. This description on www.artsy.net so aptly captures the works of this amazing painter, who was born in Edinburg, Scotland but is now based in Trinidad.
Doig is a gigantic figure in the art world, earning millions of dollars from his works. His other major works include a series of paintings of Le Corbusier’s modernist communal living apartments at Briey-en-Foret, France; ‘Country-Rock (Wing Mirror) that depicts a tunnel; and ‘Canoe-Lake’ that was inspired by the horror film ‘Friday the 13th’.
For instance, his work ‘White Canoe’ earned $11.3 million at Sotheby’s auction and his ‘The Architect’s Home in the Ravine’ sold for $12 million at a London auction.
Although this Scottish painter takes his inspiration from photographs, movies, and publications, he does not adopt a photorealist style but paints in his own signature style, taking photographs only for reference. In addition, he also takes inspiration from the works of artists, such as Friedrich, HC Westermann, Klimt and Monet. In many instances, he draws inspiration from his own childhood memories of Canada. He describes his style as painting ‘by proxy’.
Doig was always interested in art from his childhood and studied at various art schools, such as the Wimbledon School of Art, Saint Martin’s School of Art and Chelsea School of Art from where he did his Master of Arts. After graduation, he held a part-time job at the English National Opera.
Doig’s works were noticed by the art world as early as after graduation from the Chelsea College of Arts. He received the prestigious Whitechapel Artist Prize and his major works – ‘Swamped’, ‘Iron Hill’, and ‘The Architect’s Home in the Ravine’ – were even displayed at the Whitechapel Art Gallery. His works were also exhibited in Saatchi Gallery in London, UK.
It comes as no surprise that Trinidad invited Doig and gave him artist’s residency. He set up a studio at the Caribbean Contemporary Arts Center near Port of Spain. In addition, he started a weekly film club called ‘StudioFilmClub’, where he selects and screens films and also paints their posters. On Instagram, he has a followership of over 64,000 fans.
Peter Doig
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