CHARLIE SMITH LONDON is delighted to present Mathew Gibson's solo exhibition 'Index' in Soho, London.

Gibson is known for his intimate paintings that integrate architecture, interiors and still life, articulating ideas around conformity that relate to function, status and gender. In this exhibition, the subjects for Gibson's paintings are derived from a traditional notion of men's office uniform, evoking the 'tumid apathy' of T.S. Eliot's 'Men and bits of paper'.

Gibson points towards compliance within collective archetypes, seeking to remind us that behaviours are learned. Clothing serves to codify the demographic to which individuals belong, but he emphasizes that by being part of a group, others must be excluded, and that looking alike presupposes thinking alike. Gibson repeats motifs within single paintings, testifying to the fact that behaviour is learned from childhood through repetition. Clothing is crucial in creating versions of gender, with those depicted here being sourced from within a polarised version of masculinity, asserting the need of the (absent) wearers to belong. Repetition of form also denotes routine. Gibson meditates on the sense of security that might come with laying out clothes for the following days, implying a desire for order in an otherwise unpredictable world.

Positioned within the traditions of interior and still life painting, Gibson's muted palette and use of intense chiaroscuro evokes Baroque painting such as the monastic 17th-century Spanish painter Francisco Zurbaran. Earlier artists who Gibson references include 15th-century Sienese painters Sassetta and Giovanni di Paolo, specifically in their imaginative treatment of time and space, where a single figure might appear repeatedly within the same composition as a chronological device.

Gibson's process is also indicative of historic techniques. Pencil drawings are transferred onto true gesso panels; then multiple layers of thin egg tempera are methodically applied before equally thin oil glazes. Intention and process are, therefore, deliberate, methodical and devotional.

Mathew Gibson was born in Acton, London in 1962. He studied at Norwich School of Art (BA (Hons) Fine Art, 1987-90) and at Kent Institute of Art and Design (Interdisciplinary MA in Art and Architecture, 1990-91). From 2006-07 he was Professor of Foundation studies at SCAD, Savannah, USA, and from 2011 to 2022 resident artist at Colart, owners of Winsor and Newton. Gibson co-founded Contemporary Art Academy in 2022. He currently lives and works in London.

The event will take place at CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, Gramercy Park Studios, 25 Great Pulteney Street, Soho, London W1F 9ND. Available to view Monday-Friday 10am-4pm. For further information please contact [email protected]. Follow @CHARLIESMITHIdn Please contact CHARLIE SMITH LONDON for artwork list URLs: Instagram: https://go.evvnt.com/2349819-2?pid=1075 Exhibitor: https://go.evvnt.com/2349819-3?pid=1075 Artist: Mathew Gibson Category: Arts | Visual Arts | Galleries / Art