2013 marked the centenary of the birth of William Scott (1913 – 1989). Across a career spanning six decades Scott produced an extraordinary body of work that has secured his reputation as one of the leading British painters of his generation. Exhibiting in America and Europe from the early 1950s, Scott is renowned for his powerful handling of paint in his exploration of still life, landscape and the nude.
Scott developed a unique language that pushed the boundaries of abstraction and figuration, leaving an influential legacy of work which mediates important developments in mid-twentieth century European and American painting. His work is often charged with a sensuality from his dynamic compositions as well as the vitality of his paint surfaces. Consequently the works have an enduring human quality that continues to be as fresh and relevant today as it was over fifty years ago.
This major retrospective exhibition, developed in collaboration with Tate St Ives and Ulster Museum, Belfast, marked the achievements of this internationally acclaimed modern painter in his centenary year and draws on collections across the UK and Ireland. It is first major showing of the artist in the UK for over 20 years.
