Faces Forward: Young British Figuration

Docent is thrilled to present its first physical exhibition in London in collaboration with Invisible Collection.

Following Docent’s mission to present works within their local creative context, Faces Forward celebrates the young British figuration scene. The exhibition features the works of five renowned artists in the London art landscape: Elizabeth Dimitroff, Igor Moritz, Rebecca Munday, Margarida Pinheiro, and Tom White.

The exhibition is hosted at Invisible Collection, 2-4 Huntsworth Mews, London NW1 6DD.
Opening on September 19th.
Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM.

This exhibition arises from observing a resurgence in figuration and portraiture within the current artistic landscape in London. Though this genre has been significant since the 1950s with monumental artists such as Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud, its prominence waned between 2000 and 2020. Today, many young artists are rediscovering portraiture, viewing it as a medium to convey the intimacy of their existence.

Igor Moritz’s visceral depictions of loneliness and interpersonal turmoil are saturated with an electric color palette. Using oil paint or colored pencil, the Polish-born artist crafts vivid, almost Fauvist backdrops and characters who stare forlornly at the viewer. In his painting entitled Head in the Clouds, Moritz leaves the viewer dreamlike, shifting our perception of the scene so that it is we who have our heads in the clouds.

Rebecca Munday presents us with a mysterious and distant figure. The color palette of pink and red gives the painting a visceral quality, deliberately unsettling our awareness of anatomy. We find ourselves invited to a meal, with eyes fixed on us in a particularly disturbing atmosphere.

In contrast, Margarida Pinheiro’s two works offer more intimate and welcoming experiences. We contemplate the sleep of a man depicted at our scale, or the closeness between two beings bathed in soft afternoon light. Through these subjects, Pinheiro imparts an almost universal dimension to her painting, which reveals itself as a truthful portrayal.

Finally, Tom White’s work seeks to understand the body in its most intimate dimensions. Whether it is the gaze, the thickness of the skin, or the warmth of the flesh, White’s paintings evoke emotions tied to moments that seem vividly alive when viewed. The work itself becomes flesh, so generous is the painting. White notes, ‘We like to think of our relationships as unique, but intimate moments are universal: we share a language of intimacy.’