Grosvenor Gallery is pleased to invite you to an exhibition of recent works by Victor Newsome, entitled 'Visions of Jesus and his Mother'.
From his start as a sculptor, through his period of architectural and constructivist drawings, to his recent figurative paintings, Victor Newsome has been in a long and steady process of experimentation. Irrespective of current trends, he has always followed a solitary path and remained faithful to his vision.
The recent works take Jesus, and his mother Mary as the subject matter. He draws and paints the Virgin Mary as a young girl, aged 12, (the age of her immaculate conception, it is suggested by some). The drawings are presented in an almost schematic way, head on, from left profile and right profile, with a square grid underpinning the drawing work. The portraits of a crucified Christ are in a similar format.
The style of the works directly relates to Coptic Icon painting, with their large, haunted eyes. Newsome states that he wanted to depict Mary as she would have existed, and used images of females from the Palestine area in his research. What runs through the works is quietness, a softness tempered by determination visible in the faces of these two religious icons. William Packer, writing for the Financial Times, about Newsome's last show at the Grosvenor Gallery, stated 'Newsome is not concerned with illusions, but rather with where things are, and how they relate…..how oddly convincing and persuasive the work is, and beautiful too. It is the great paradox of his art, as of all true art, that it is the very art itself that teases the imagination. We know it to be art, yet still believe in it.'
Victor studied painting at the Leeds School of Art and taught at various art schools including Leicester, Nottingham, Hull, Camberwell, Goldsmiths, Brighton and Wimbledon & Chelsea. His work features in numerous collections including the Tate Gallery.