tenants / Jonathan Murphy

I have a studio at The Yard where I make paintings, objects and ceramics for exhibition and sale. My artworks range from domestic size pieces to larger installation works.
 
I have over 20 years’ experience as an artist and art technician. I studied painting at The University of Bradford and the UCL Slade School of Fine Art and held a Gasworks London Studio from 2012–2018. I was an artist in Residence at Pivô, São Paulo in 2017.
 
I have collected and shown a body of contemporary Brazilian art and have curated numerous group-shows and events independently and in a freelance capacity. I’ve worked with Turner Prize nominees, and a host of international artists such as Jose Damasceno, Tai Shaani, Anthea Hamilton and Eddie Peake. I’m the creator of the online platform Nada/Da. I’m currently the Senior Gallery Technician for Brighton CCA (Centre for Contemporary Art) one of the newest institutional sized galleries on the South Coast of England.
 
My studio plays a central role in my practice, the activities that occur here radiate from it like spokes in a wheel. I find the beginning of a new painting in many places: pencil sketches, a desire to respond to a previous work, a catchy title or just being in the studio with no more sweeping-up to do; very occasionally this beginning crystalises into something, but more often, this initial process of creating a painting is scraped back or incised into (with the tip of paintbrushes, splinters and sculpting tools). This tidal journey that the paintings undergo — accretion and erosion of image + material — leave echoes of previous incarnations. Often, the paintings are re-worked over a period of years and the misses of making are stockpiled. The act of discarding re-sites the corrupted as new source material. In this way I try to make artwork that can both disrupt and catalyse my next move and is a kind of beauty I haven’t found before.
 
My artwork is available directly from my studio and through various galleries. Please follow me on Instagram for my most recent projects and contact me to arrange a studio visit or to view available artwork.