Move around the exhibition space by pointing and clicking on the pictures you would like to view. For over thirty years Philip Bouchard has worked as a full-time artist, painting almost exclusively for private clients. In 2005 he held an exhibition of his paintings at the Victoria Art Gallery, Bath. The paintings above are a representation of that exhibition:
The SURREAL SPACES Exhibition.
The main theme of the SURREAL SPACES Exhibition was architecture. Each of the paintings depicted either a building (for instance 'The Open Debate' portrayed the Palace of Westminster) or was inspired by some form of architectural reference (i.e. 'The Mooncatcher' which borrowed its structure from a basement area in Somerset House).
The first steps in the career of any artist are influenced by the work of other artists. In this case the influence was mainly the paintings of Magritte, then Dali, Escher and, going further back, the great landscape paintings of Claude Lorrain.
Escher's work inspired the setting and staircases for 'The Mooncatcher'. Magritte's work, however, is the overall source of inspiration. There is something in the way in which Magritte was able to create a whole magical world that seemed real, and yet which we knew was impossible, which, for Bouchard, is extremely compelling and inspiring. Somehow this world seems to tap into the spectator's 'inner reality': the space where thoughts and dreams exist. It is the world of Surrealism. These paintings are a tribute to Magritte.
(More information on the exhibition can be found on the Bath Heritage Services website ref: 'Philip Bouchard - Bath'; also on the Victoria Art Gallery website: see 'Past Exhibitions, 2005')
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