JACK MORROCCO
TALKING PICTURES
MORNINGSIDE GALLERY
JACK MORROCCO
TALKING PICTURES
26TH OCTOBER - 9TH NOVEMBER 2024
N O T E S :
All paintings are for sale and may be purchased or reserved upon receipt of this catalogue. We kindly request that decisions on reserves are made by 12pm on Friday the 25th of October. Please contact us if you would like further images of a painting or to arrange an in-gallery or virtual viewing appointment prior to the exhibition opening.
Painting sizes are width x height and include the frame.
TALKING PICTURES
Paintings should have something to say. They have stories to tell of time, of place, or of feelings and fantasies. They talk of quality of light, of movement and reflection. They tell of days in the sun and days gone by. And if you look closely they might tell you a little about me. As an artist I strive to find a visual language to say something meaningful about my subjects and something interesting to the paintings’ viewers. That language may vary from painting to painting, subject to subject. It may be through the use of colour, brush-stroke, content or design but the purpose remains to describe a scene, an environment or an emotion and to convey that story to the viewer. With my paintings the story is seldom simply about how the subject appears, (albeit the café or marketplace, the canal or pond may be beautiful in themselves), but what can be expressed through the treatment of the scene – what it feels like to sit in that Parisian café watching the world go by; the heat, bustle and scent of the Provençal market; the timeless sense evoked by sun-framed oarsmen on the Grand Canal or to witness the embers of the day fade over the reflections in a lilypond. But the stories needn’t be purely a representation or description of things seen and experienced directly. Some of my contemporary still life pieces talk of connections with, perhaps, late 19th century painters in Paris, and of their influences – Van Gogh’s sunflowers, Matisse’s doves, Picasso’s Saltimbanques. It is an opportunity to retell parts of stories from the past but in my own words, with my own characters and plot – not so much a still life of objects on a table but more characters in a tableau, a short play to be staged in the viewer’s mind - a conversation on canvas between the present and the past. I hope you take the time to look and listen to what my paintings are trying to say. You might hear something new or perhaps just a distant echo, a memory of a story of your own. It will hopefully always be something pleasant!
Jack B Morrocco DA, FRSA
INTRODUCTION
Jack had finished his introductory words to this exhibition before I had even set pen to paper. His description of his paintings as ‘a conversation on canvas between the past and the present’ is perfect and leads us beautifully into the title of this exhibition, Talking Pictures . Jack grew up talking pictures; his mother was a painter, his father an architect and painter, uncles and extended family all artists or involved in the arts. Art was an ever present subject of conversation, and paintings were always being talked about. So it has continued for Jack, a lifetime of ‘talking pictures’ with other artists, past and present, in person and through their paintings. We see these working conversations coming to life on the canvas; when embarking upon lilypond paintings six years ago it was to Monet that Jack turned, seeking out what first fascinated him all those years ago about the iridescent pads floating on the reflective, watery depths. Having worked with the subject matter over the years, Jack has found his own artistic vocabulary expanded and what he expresses now is a different story about this time honoured subject. It is Jack’s contemporary still life paintings that are his most autobiographical and tell the story of his life and his interests - here we find family paintings, a loyal red chair, guitars, mandolins, old letterpress printing blocks. These paintings speak also of the artists who have inspired him most from art college to now - Sir Peter Blake, Picasso, Larry Rivers - all artists who have embraced the spirit and methodology of collage - selecting temporally disparate images, multiple perspectives and different material surfaces and then bringing them together on the canvas to tell a new story. In each of his paintings, whether landscape or studio work, Jack seeks to engage and speak to the viewer, inviting them into this conversation on the canvas. The language is first and foremost visual; as much as the studio works invite discussion, they are immediately engaging because of their palette choices and striking compositional design. The landscapes - the dappled light of Provence, the Italian waiter, the gondola gliding through the dark glassy canals of Venice - these are images created to evoke shared memories and the feeling of ‘being there’. And within the lilypond paintings it is the mesmerising visual unity of land, sky and water on the lilypond’s surface that speaks of the timeless beauty and tranquillity of this visual experience.
Enough of these words though, let the paintings speak for themselves!
Eileadh Swan Gallery Director
I TALY
My ongoing series of views of Venice from the water were a chance to relive John Singer Sargent’s 1913 watercolours, (in his case painted from a gondola) – most scenes almost unchanged. Eugene Boudin inspired a view of Le Port de Antibes, also almost unchanged from his 1893 viewpoint. (illustrated in “In Good Company” pages 31,32). These paintings are inspired by stories from the past but are retold in a different way and have something new to say.
Rio Malpaga, Dorsoduro, Venice Oil on Canvas | 96 x 71 cm | £9250
Rio Orseolo, Venice Oil on Canvas | 77 x 62 cm | £6500
Fruit Market, Campo de Fiori, Rome Oil on Canvas | 77 x 62 cm | £6500
Traghetto di San Toma, Venice Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
Riva degli Shiavoni, Venice Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
Ponte Vecchio from Ponte Santa Trinita Oil on Canvas | 122 x 71 cm | £10,250
Bridge of Sighs, Venice Oil on Canvas | 56 x 56 cm | £4650
Basilica di San Marco, Venice Oil on Canvas | 56 x 56 cm | £4650
Light and Shade, Venice Oil on Canvas | 56 x 66 cm | £5750
Parochia de San Stefano, Venice Oil on Canvas | 41 x 36 cm | £3000
FRANCE & SPAIN
Each time I find myself passing a café or walking through a market in the south of France or Spain I hear a voice saying “go on, you know you want to” and I can’t resist capturing the scene. It is without doubt the quality of the light and in particular the way it filters and dapples from it’s naked brilliance through the ever-present plane trees to create pattern and movement so evocative of these Mediterranean towns and villages.
Passeig des Born, Palma Oil on Canvas | 96 x 71 cm | £9250
Shaded Café, Placa de Cort, Palma Oil on Canvas | 81 x 62 cm | £6950
Horse and Carriage, Dappled Light, Palma Oil on Canvas | 56 x 56 cm | £4650
Beach Day, Cadiz Oil on Canvas | 51 x 46 cm | £3250
Overhanging Branches, L’etang, Bordeaux Oil on Canvas | 142 x 112 cm | £17,500
Plane Tree Shade, Le Tilleul, St Paul de Vence Oil on Canvas | 77 x 62 cm | £6500
Market Day, Place aux Herbes, Uzes Oil on Canvas | 77 x 62 cm | £6500
Place de l’Eglise, St Emilion Oil on Canvas | 112 x 81 cm | £10,500
Morning Market, Aix Oil on Canvas | 62 x 62 cm | £5750
Le Tilleul, St Paul de Vence Oil on Canvas | 62 x 62 cm | £5750
Flower Market, Aix en Provence Oil on Board | 51 x 51 cm | £3575
Morning Market, Pezenas Oil on Board | 51 x 51 cm | £3575
Place des Ramparts, St Tropez Oil on Canvas | 81 x 62 cm | £7500
Les Deux Magots, Paris Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
Tete-a-Tete, Aix en Provence Oil on Board | 51 x 51 cm | £3575
WATERLILIES
My conversations with lily ponds has been going on now for some six years. They keep asking new questions of me and presenting with new challenges and as a consequence my answers vary. It would be easy to look and see how others, particularly Monet, have answered the questions in the past, but as my studies continue I find my answers are very different – different viewpoint, different handling and a different rationale. My interest is in the reflection as a vertical backdrop against which waterlilies define a horizontal. I am now able to set this volume against new subjects, real and imagined, but mostly as seen at different times of day and in different light conditions.
Old Pond at Cairnie, Weeping Willow Reflected, Morning Oil on Canvas | 122 x 122 cm | £17,000
Lily Pond at Cairnie, Shades of Sunset Oil on Canvas | 142 x 112 cm | £17,500
Lilypond, Dawn Oil on Canvas | 96 x 122 cm | £12,250
Lily Pond at Cairnie, Dusk Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
Lily Pond at Cairnie, Setting Sun Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
Lilypond, Midday Oil on Canvas | 96 x 122 cm | £12,250
Lily Pond, Daybreak Oil on Canvas | 122 x 96 cm | £12,250
The Old Pond, Cairnie Oil on Canvas | 122 x 122 cm | £17,000
Lily Pond, Dusk Sky, Eastward Oil on Canvas | 66 x 66 cm | £6250
CAR I BBEAN
My Caribbean studies tell two different stories. The horses at dawn attracted me last year and this year I found them a little later (7.00am) and in more light so their form became more defined and the colours stronger. These small studies are about the relationship between horse and handler where there is a subtle change in the balance of power brought about by the immersion of both in the sea. My mind goes back to Sorolla and Gauguin to confirm that horses on the beach is an appropriate subject for a painter, something that worries me whenever I paint in the Caribbean. The other, less serious, story is one all about colour. These small studies of Caribbean life are an extension of the studies I have previously undertaken on Mediterranean beaches but what they have to say is definitely said with a Caribbean accent. They are an opportunity for me to be less literal in my portrayal, less accurately representative but hopefully no less evocative.
Through the Surf, Barbados Sunrise Oil on Canvas | 61 x 51 cm | £4250
Washing Racehorse at Dawn, Barbados Oil on Canvas | 52 x 46 cm | £3250
Dawn Swim, Pebble Beach, Barbados Oil on Canvas | 37 x 37 cm | £3150
Caribbean Colours, Tobago Oil on Canvas | 37 x 37 cm | £3150
Precious Shade, Barbados Oil on Canvas | 37 x 37 cm | £3150
STUD IO
In 2023 I started a series of paintings on the theme of Reasons to be Cheerful, the title of an Ian Dury song. The connection I have to Ian Dury is tenuous to say the least in that we shared, albeit at a different time and place, a lecturer, the pop artist Sir Peter Blake who has been an enormous influence on my work. The theme was originally expressed in three large paintings, one of which was exhibited in last year’s Morningside Gallery exhibition. I extended the theme to two smaller paintings which are on show this year. Following a short visit to Tangier last year I took inspiration from the architecture, colours, fabrics, patterns, furniture and it’s history. Matisse spent time in Tangier where he painted some of his Odalisques but rather than reference any of his works as I had done in previous paintings, I have chosen to reference his inspiration for these, Ingres’ Grand Odalisque. Slightly more obscure is the reference to American pop artist Larry Rivers through the Camel motif, a subject he worked on from it’s popular image on cigarette cartons. So this is a painting that talks about joining dots, making connections and at the same time creating a pleasing whole, a still life but one of times, places, people and things.
Reasons to be Cheerful, Part VI, Tabletop Tangier Oil on Canvas | 139 x 139 cm | £18,500
Reasons to be Cheerful, Part V Oil on Canvas | 139 x 139 cm | £18,500
Mandolin & Manet Oil on Canvas | 96 x 96 cm | £10,750
Lady of Shalott Roses and Silver Teapot Oil on Canvas | 62 x 62 cm | £5750
Rosa Floribunda and Silver Pot Oil on Canvas | 62 x 62 cm | £5750
White Lilies, Silver Pot and Ginger Jar Oil on Canvas | 97 x 97 cm | £10,250
White Lilies, Silver Ewer and Poole Jug Oil on Canvas | 97 x 97 cm | £10,250
JACK MORROCCO DA FRSA
Jack Morrocco was born in Edinburgh in 1953 and educated at Madras College, St Andrews.
Jack went on to study Art at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee, between 1970 and 1974, under Alberto Morrocco OBE, James Morrison, Peter Collins, Jack Knox, David McClure and Gordon Cameron. This was followed by a Post Graduate year of study at Duncan of Jordanstone, after which he was awarded a highly commended post diploma - the highest possible award at the time.
In 1973 he was selected to study at Hospitalfield House, Arbroath, under the renowned pop artist Sir Peter Blake CBE.
In 1975 Jack was awarded the Farquhar Reid Traveling Scholarship and chose to spend it in Paris and Florence.
Following his studies, Jack became an illustrator before going on to establish a design and marketing agency in Dundee, while continuing to paint for various galleries in Scotland and the annual RSA and RGI exhibitions.
Jack began painting full time in 1997 and since then he has exhibited extensively in selected galleries throughout Scotland and in London. His paintings hang in numerous corporate and private collections here, and abroad.
MORNINGSIDE GALLERY 94 Morningside Road, Edinburgh, EH10 4BY 0131 447 3041 | art@morningsidegallery.co.uk | www.morningsidegallery.co.uk
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