Printmaker - Alasdair Gray

Alasdair Gray is a Scottish printmaker who was born in Glasgow in 1934. Gray is also known for being a novelist, a muralist, playwright, printmaker and illustrator; his best- known pieces of work as a visual artist are his graphic illustrations for his own books.

I have chosen two prints of his collection which I found most intriguing to look at. The print on the left is called 'The Death Will Break', which is 76 x 56cm.  The reason I picked this piece was to do with the bold colours used. I love how the bright flat use of colour on the background makes the black stand out, but I also feel it makes the piece  very modern. The highlights of blue used around the bottom I feel draws your eye  from the top of the print to the bottom, which is to the poem.

The second print I have chosen is called 'Bill Skinner in His Otago Street Home' which is on the right. This is a screenprint, which was done in 2011, and is 56.3 x 29 in size. I found this print interesting because of the emotion Gray has managed to portray on this mans face. The body language of his crossed arms and the intense stare illustrates that he is deep in thought, which makes you wondering what is on his mind. This contrasts well with small view of the busy city life we see from out of his window, which he pays no attention to. The use of the black wall in the background helps the man to stand out, but it also emphasises your attention again  back to the busy life outside of his flat. Similarly to the other print, his use of a limited palette works well in making the print easy on the eye.

Personally I like the work of Alasdair Gray, but I don't find them overly influential or inspiring. His figures of people feel cartoon and almost puppet-like, which I consider them to be sometimes quite disturbing to look at. However, he is a very talented printmaker, and I enjoyed looking at his work.