Sean Scully - Softcover

"'Thoughtful and comprehensive... the concluding interviews that appear in the book supply ample proof of the artist's generous way with words' - Modern Painters"

The first fully illustrated monograph on Sean Scully's life and career to date

Sean Scully is one of today’s best-loved abstract painters. He has produced a vibrant and compelling body of work that is widely collected and internationally exhibited. His signature style of lines or bands of colour, alluding to architectural elements such as portals, windows and walls, is one of the most instantly recognizable in contemporary painting.

This book is the first fully illustrated monograph to present an account of the artist’s life and career to date, from his childhood in 1950s London, via New York and Barcelona, to the present day in Munich.

Lavish reproductions of Scully's major works illustrate the text, while photographs taken by him on his travels show some of the forms that inspire them. Photographs of Scully at work in his studio demonstrate stage by stage how he creates his pictures, from blank canvas to finished work.

Eminent art historian and critic David Carrier traces the development of Scully’s oeuvre and assesses its significance. Drawing on his many conversations with Scully, Carrier provides unique insights into the artist’s working methods and the motivation for his art. A concise chronology, exhibition history and select bibliography, as well as an interview with the artist, complete a volume which should be found on all contemporary art bookshelves.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The sources of Sean Scully’s style · Part I: Searching for a Style – 1. A London Childhood · 2. Early visits to America · 3. Becoming established in New York · Part II: Discovering a Style 4. Backs and Fronts · Part III: Using a Style – 5. Staging abstract narratives · 6. Art on paper · 7. ‘Plaids’, ‘Mirrors’, ‘Floating Paintings’ 8. ‘Walls of Light’: Sean Scully’s utopian pictures · Part IV: Interview with Sean Scully