Vicissitude (2022) by Andy Finlay - Diptych (2 x 1300mm x 1000mm) in oil paint and cement powder on canvas.
vicissitude
[changes in circumstance or fortune]
A painting commissioned by CG Asset Management in 2022. The brief was to create a work to hang in their King Street office in Central London. It was to have its origins in CG Asset Management’s core values and philosophies and include their deep rooted history with the City of London.
The aim was to bring the past into view through a snapshot of this moment in time.
The piece references historical black and white images, scrapbook memories, the Financial Times, demolition and construction, layering of history and knowledge, wealth, contemporary and ancient, fortitude and success as well as loss. It is about multiplicity and pluralism, about relationships and longevity.
Background. The fluid skyline
We see the skyline, are surrounded by the buildings, and our perception is of immovability, of strength and the ability to withstand storms, physically and financially.
But how permanent are our buildings and what are the determining factors that influence their longevity? We take them for granted, their position on the skyline, their place in our daily lives. But the city is far from static, it is fluid. Buildings are being demolished daily to make space for new ones which in turn will be demolished to provide space for the next. The City of London is constantly changing and every building has a story, a history.
There are places that remain unchanged though, pockets of history that are out of the reach of the developers, they have a value beyond that of finance. But even these are not guaranteed immunity.
Standing on Waterloo Bridge, looking in the direction of the CG Asset Management building on King St EC2, is a skyline that on one side has remained remarkable unchanged and the other that, in just 20 years, has been completely transformed. The origins of the painting are in this view.
Planning and research
The view eastwards from Waterloo Bridge down the River Thames towards St. Paul's Cathedral and Blackfriars Bridge has been the focus for many artists and photographers for well over 150 years. This afforded me a rich visual data source to work with. Added to this were my own personal photographs and drawings that I have been recording over the last decade and a half.
For the commission I made a number of site visits specifically to sketch and photograph the current skyline and capture the moment at exactly the moment that I was painting it.
A selection of reference images from the planning and research stages.
Composition and development
The decision to make the piece as a diptych was made early in the process. Having two canvases physically separating the contrasting sides of the skyline.
The left hand canvas is dominated by St Paul’s Cathedral. Having been granted a line of sight protection as part of a policy, known as 'St Paul’s Heights', which has been in operation by the City of London since 1937. This means that developers can’t build anything that encroaches into an area that would affect our view of the building, and has ensured that the skyline on this side has remained remarkably unchanged since St Paul’s Cathedral was built in 1675.
The right hand canvas in contrast has no protection. When the Gherkin was built in 2001 it stood on its own. It was an iconic piece of design and its location allowed it to tower over the surrounding area, an unmissable, bold and brave architectural statement.
In the two decades since then, buildings have been erected around it, gradually restricting our view. In 2022 a new building was constructed that finally obscured the Gherkin from sight. This was the year Vicissitude was painted.
The contrast of fortunes between the buildings that make up this skyline is a thread that runs through the painting.
Production, process, materials and painting
Sketches were either made using traditional brush and ink painting onto handmade paper or drawn using a tablet and stylus.
The custom stretchers were built from scratch by hand. They were then hand stretched with heavy raw canvas and primed ready for painting.
The materials used throughout the production of the painting reference the city. The hand made stretchers were made from planed building timber, the titanium white oil paint is the newest purest, brightest of all the white oil paints. The cement powder that was dusted in layers over the white paint is that same as used in the construction industry and is present in almost every new building from their foundations up.
Starting with St Pauls on one side and The Gherkin on the other, the oil pant was applied in layers. The layering in the physical production of the painting mirroring the changes that occurred on the ground. Areas were obscured as new areas were painted over them. The point in time that the layering in the painting stops is during the final stages of the construction of the building that finally obscures the Gherkin from view.
The transparency of the paint layers over the Gherkin allow us a glimpse into the past, to the views from Waterloo Bridge that were available to previous generations but are now lost to us.
Production and painting progress images
Commissioned painting hanging in the boardroom at CG Asset Management, London
About the artist
Andy Finlay is a contemporary British artist.
He works primarily as a painter using canvas, white oil paint, cement, found items and gold leaf to create subtle, textured pieces with complex narratives. He has exhibited extensively and his work can be found in many corporate and private collections.
About the artist
Andy Finlay is a contemporary British artist.
He works primarily as a painter using canvas, white oil paint, cement, found items and gold leaf to create subtle, textured pieces with complex narratives. He has exhibited extensively and his work can be found in many corporate and private collections.
Vicissitude by Andy Finlay Diptych (2 x 1300mm x 1000mm) Oil paint and cement powder on canvas. Commissioned by CG Asset Management
The authour recognises the copyrights for all images used and is grateful for the use of them in this page. If any images appear without the correct credit or are in breach of any copyright please contact the authour (Andy Finlay at studio@andyfinlay.co.uk) who will rectify this error or omission immediately.