Mesh II
About this artwork
Prunella Clough’s artwork titles of the early 1980s often refer to fences, gates, mesh and wire – materials of domestic and industrial security. The paintings themselves generally refuse to depict these subjects in a straightforward manner. This painting has a complex abstract pattern reminiscent of textile design. This pattern disintegrates and disappears across the surface, leaving large areas of the background visible. The painting’s frontal, flat view aligns with the shallow style of her snapshots, taken when out and about to aid her memory in the studio. This painting also hints at an aerial view of a landscape: perhaps a long-held trace of her wartime work as a map maker. Clough’s friend, the painter Patrick Heron, once described her paintings as ‘machines for seeing.’
Published September 2022
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artist:Prunella Clough (1919 - 1999) English
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title:Mesh II
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date created:1981
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materials:Oil on canvas
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measurements:117.00 x 129.50 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Purchased 1983
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accession number:GMA 2744
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gallery:
Prunella Clough
Prunella Clough
A painter, printmaker and draughtsman, Prunella Clough’s main subject was the urban and industrial landscape of Britain. Clough studied at Chelsea School of Art in London before working as a draughtsman during the Second World War, drawing charts and maps for the War Office. From the late 1940s to...