Alan McGowan (b 1962) works directly from life with a magnificent command of anatomy, draughtsmanship and expressive paint handling. McGowan's understanding of the figure goes deep into the collective psyche, grappling with what it is to be human in all its physicality, imperfection and grace.
'Art is prefaced by hunger; it moves to meet a feeling inside. If the shallow world of advertising images, game shows and facile materialism was enough then we wouldn’t need art. But it isn’t and we do. The arts allow us to connect outside of ourselves to a larger reality. In my case through the works of Rubens, Leonardo, Bacon and Freud. It also, paradoxically, connects us inwards, towards our internal life.'
Alan McGowan
Based in Edinburgh, Alan McGowan trained at Edinburgh College of Art. He has exhibited widely in the UK, Europe, the USA and South Korea. His work has featured in many national exhibitions of Contemporary Figurative Art including the Scottish Portrait Awards, the BP Portrait Award, the Threadneedle Prize for Figurative Art and the Ruth Borchard Self Portrait exhibition.