Artist Profile - Andy Burgess

Mid Century Perspectives, the paintings of Andy Burgess (c) Arizona Public Media from Cynthia Corbett Gallery on Vimeo.

 

 

The Tom Smarte Lifestyle collection begins with gifts and homewares created from the works of Andy Burgess.

London-born artist Andy Burgess, currently residing in Tucson, Arizona, is known for his renditions of modernist and mid-century architecture, panoramic cityscape paintings, and elaborate mosaic-like collages made from collected vintage papers and ephemera. Lauded by Annabel Samspon, Deputy Editor of Tatler as “the next David Hockney”, Burgess continually expands his artistic vocabulary by mastering various media, most recently immersing himself in photography and printmaking.

Burgess explores in depth the genesis of modern architecture in Europe and the US and its relationship to modern art, avant-garde design and abstract painting. By rediscovering and reinventing these architectural gems and bringing them to life again with the brush, Burgess is breathing fresh life into this critical area of modernism and deepening his own exploration of the meeting points between representation and abstraction. 

"In my modernist house paintings, I explore modernist and contemporary architecture in depth and its relationship to modern art, avant-garde design and in particular abstract painting. By rediscovering and reinventing these architectural gems, I hope to breathe fresh life into this critical area of modernism, deepening an understanding of the meeting points between representation and abstraction.

Whilst modernist architecture never became the dominant mode of house design it nevertheless continues to inspire and amaze. The clean lines, open spaces, use of modern materials such as steel, concrete and glass and the adoption of state-of-the-art building and design techniques make many modern houses stunning works of art in their own right. In my choice of subject matter, I often start with a real place, an actual house that I may or may not have seen in the flesh, but I choose to invent and re-imagine the scene, adding my own heightened colour palette and my own details of furniture and foliage to create a magical new reality. In the end I hope to create, dream-like abstracted versions that fill the viewer with desire and wonder." - Andy Burgess

 

 

 

Although best known for his modern architectural work, Burgess's earliest work was modern abstract. Having developed his architectural work with more geometric patterns, Andy decided in 2019 to rediscover his youth and concentrate on creating more abstract art.

"In my new series of abstract paintings, I explore how the two-dimensional painting surface can create the illusion of light and space and how colour and form can impact the viewer’s emotional response and create a joyous and uplifting experience. I play with pattern and colour by dividing up the surface into a grid of sixteen squares. Using this grid, I can create an infinite lexicon of designs that, like a musical score, play with repetition and variation. These abstractions also relate to the human practice of craft and design, how we humans, for millennia, have fabricated objects, such as rugs or bowls, both utilitarian and decorative, to enrich our lives and to express our creativity." - Andy Burgess

 

 

Alongside the large-scale paintings Burgess creates collages which reflect his love of vintage graphics, particularly those from the 1930s -50s, a “golden age” in American graphic design and advertising. Burgess has been collecting vintage American ephemera for many years; this ephemera is then unapologetically deconstructed, cut up into tiny pieces and reconstructed into visual and verbal poems, dazzling multi-colored pop art pieces, and constructed cityscapes. That's something to look out for in 2021 as Tom Smarte develops the Lifestyle collection with Andy, re-interpreting this ephemera into long lasting homewares.

In January 2012, Burgess had his first museum exhibit Paper City at The University of Arizona Museum of Art. In 2014, Burgess had his first solo New York exhibition at Site 109. In 2016, he was invited to collaborate with master printmakers at Tandem Press in Madison, Wisconsin to develop a body of work in various printmaking media. Burgess had a pivotal year in 2018 with a solo exhibit, Mid-century Perspectives, at the Tucson Museum of Art, and also the publication of his first monograph Modernist House Paintings: Andy Burgess by Nazraeli Press.

Represented by The Cynthia Corbett Gallery in London, as well as galleries in San Francisco, Laguna Beach, New York and by Etherton Gallery in Tucson, Burgess’s work can be seen at many prestigious international art fairs, including Art Miami, Art Hamptons, The London Art Fair, Art Central in Hong Kong, Art Palm Springs and Art New York.

The Tom Smarte Lifestyle Collection featuring And's artwork includes gifts and homewares including ceramics, notebooks, leather clutch bags, coasters, tea towels and tea light candle holders. The range will expand in 2021 to include kitchenware, throws, cushions, lampshades, bedding, bath, beach and travel accessories.

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You can view the Tom Smarte Lifestyle Collection based on the artwork of Andy Burgess here.

You can see more of Andy's artwork at www.andyburgessart.com which also handily serves as a preview of our upcoming lifestyle and homewares collection.