Very well in fact.
Once upon a time Giotto di Bondone was heralded for his remarkable ability to put pen to paper and, freehand, whip out a perfect circle. As we delve deeper into our digital daze, such skills are slipping into obscurity. But while we’re busy feasting our square eyes on fleeting Facebook images and and flashing CGI flicks, Frank Laws is putting paint to paper creating vistas of astonishing precision and technique. Indulging the nosey, voyeuristic neighbour in all of us, Frank’s artistic focus is on the windows and walls of the council estates that scatter the country. Where most see bricks and mortar, Frank, a former labourer, sees the craftsmanship behind the blocks, the consideration that it took to lay them and the cracking paintings that re-imagining them can create. With his ruler firmly in hand Frank has spent recent months amassing work for his solo exhibition which begins at The Print House Gallery in East London tomorrow. So shut off your screens, put down your mouse and fix your eyes on Frank’s delights, you never know what’s in store if you slip a peek between the lines. i-D online dipped into Frank’s studio and here is what we saw…
Images clockwise from left: Urswick Road, Her Window, Them Upstairs.
Text Sean Baker
Film Georgia Hudson
Images courtesy of Frank Laws
