John McLean: Pleasure Garden

I work towards such an interdependence of parts that nothing could be added or taken away: a kind of absolute. When it happens, the eye and the spirit join up, just as the ear and soul do when you listen to a fine song.

The Fine Art Society presents an exhibition of painting, works on paper and sculpture by abstract artist John McLean, highlighting the cohesion of his work and his emphasis on visual spaciality across large and small scales, in two- and three-dimensions.

Work from across four decades of John's career is on show, marking a route from expansive gestural abstraction to deliniated geometry. The most recent painting in the exhibition - an untitled canvas from 2019 - brings both aspects of John's practice together: clear and measured stripes of colour consist of mottled pigments and swept surfaces.

The draw of sculpture remained with John across his career, from his early days learning to weld and cut steel at Stockwell Depot, through visits to Emma Lake in the 1980s, to his collaborations with fellow APT artist Steve Lewis; several of which are exhibited here. In his excellent monograph on John and his work, Ian Collins notes that sculpture gave John "the freedom of collage and the fluency of drawing in space".

The estate of John McLean is managed by The Fine Art Society. Please contact us with any enquiries relating to sales, loans and copyright.