Kildare Arts Service : Municipal Collection

‘Paddy in Front of Painting’ - Peter Johnston

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Dimensions: 103cm x 82cm

Location: Celbridge Library

In this photo-realistic painting shows a young man, presumably a fellow artist, standing in front of a painting. Johnston paints his subject with great detail, while leaving the background as simple as possible. The use of colour in the composition is mostly muted, making the bright blue of the sitter’s jacket and jeans all the more striking. The confident swagger of the subject is reminiscent of the photographic portraiture Robert Mapplethorpe, in particular his portrait of the singer and poet Patti Smith.

Click here to compare this work to ‘Patti Smith’ by Robert Mapplethorpe

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