Joan Eardley: A Sense of Place

by Patrick Elliott, Anne Galastro

A fresh look at Eardley's astonishing, earthy and sensuous depictions of both children and the fishing village of Catterline, many never before published. This book will accompany the exhibition Joan Eardley: Fifteen Years which will be held at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art from December 3, 2016 to May 14, 2017.

Joan Eardley's career lasted barely fifteen years: she died in 1963, aged just forty-two. During that time she concentrated on two very different themes: the extraordinarily candid paintings of children in the Townhead area of Glasgow and paintings of the fishing village of Catterline, just south of Aberdeen, with its leaden skies and wild sea. These two contrasting strands are the focus of this book, which looks in detail at her working process. It draws on a remarkable archive of sketches and photographs which remains largely unknown and unpublished. It also features many works from public and private collections, allowing the viewer to trace specific developments between the photographs, the drawings and the finished paintings.

Genres: Art

128 pages, Hardcover

First published December 13, 2016

About the author

Patrick Elliott is Chief Curator at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh. He has written extensively on modern and contemporary art.

Reviews

[Mark Friend · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was wonderful to have this collection of sketches, studies and works along with some contextual notes all grouped together around focus of motif to give the reader a sense of Joan Eardley’s working approach to / in these places. Whilst I would love to see these works in the real, I will value and return to ‘A sense of place’ as an evocative reference.

[Laurie Hammons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiring biography of beloved mid-20th century Scottish artist. It includes many reproductions of her amazing paintings. She painted not only children in an impoverished section of Glasgow, but also the powerful landscapes of the northeastern Scottish coast from a tiny fishing village. I loved information on her working process. Her untimely death at age 42 was a loss to the art world.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know this artist, but loved my exposure to her. Love that she had two main strong interests. I understand that completely, and it gives me hope that I can have the same.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely background to the exhibition. Very glad to have seen the paintings for real as well as reading about hem here.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on one of the painters I have loved since I first saw one of her Catterline paintings at the Gallery of Modern Art in the Botanic Gardens,Edinburgh, more than fifty years ago.
The exhibition was overwhelming!