Pat Vale: ‘Drawn Two Cities’ Exhibition at Albemarle
British-born, Brooklyn-based artist Pat Vale debuts exciting new work exclusively at our Albemarle Street shop in Mayfair. We spoke to Pat about how his intricate cityscapes come together.
To most, the phrase ‘landscape artist’ brings to mind scenes of pastoral beauty: rolling hills, mighty oaks, and newborn lambs frolicking; hay wains and starry nights. Pat Vale is very much a landscape artist, but you won’t find any cornfields or cattle in his work. Rather, his muse is an entirely different sort of landscape, one which is no doubt more familiar to a contemporary audience than any picturesque farmstead: the city. Pat has made a name for himself through his astonishingly intricate (and often large-scale) line drawings that intuitively capture the vibrating, chaotic energy that can only be found in a major metropolis. The subjects he returns to most frequently are London, where he grew up, and New York City, where he lives now, and it’s these locations that take centre stage in his latest exhibition.
We’re thrilled to play host to ‘Drawn Two Cities’, a collection of new work from Pat, which will be on show at our Albemarle Street shop, London, from 3rd November to 7th January. The exhibition centres around two of Pat’s signature cityscapes: one of London from Waterloo Bridge, and the other a view of New York from the East River, close to Pat’s apartment. His process combines on location, en plein air sketching with meticulous studio work. You won’t see him stood before an easel in a billowy white shirt, a big straw hat perched on his head, but remember, he isn’t a typical landscape artist. Instead, Pat works surreptitiously, filling small notebooks with his keen observations which he then takes back to his studio. “The start of the project was two location drawings, each the result of three sessions,” Pat explains. “I used Indian ink and a black pen for these. I’d pre-mixed ink with different tonal values and put them into brush pens, allowing me to work instinctively in windy conditions.”
This will be Pat’s third exhibition with us, following installations of his work in our Wooster Street and Williamsburg shops in NYC. Pat and Paul share a mutual admiration that has imbued each of these projects with a genuine sense of fun and collaboration. This time round, the two have even worked on a (highly) limited edition t-shirt together, featuring images Paul has selected from Pat’s extensive sketchbook archive. We’ll leave you with these closing words from Pat: “I am grateful to continue my collaboration with Paul and his team, and am honoured to host my first show in London in 13 years in this wonderful space.”
Click here to take a virtual tour of the exhibition.
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Published: 03.11
Words : Nathan Sharp