This two part exhibition comprises 44 drawings by British sculptor Nigel Hall spanning 40 years of his career. Although better known for his three dimensional work Hall sees drawing as a parallel activity to his sculpture: independent but informed by common sources.
The drawings in this exhibition chart Hall’s progression from figurative works of the 1960s (shown in part I) through to the economic and linear ‘book’ drawings of the last few years (part II).
All the works reflect Hall’s sculptural preoccupations. Circles, ellipses, intercepting bars and lines create and vie for space on and beyond the sheet. As such the interrelation between the forms are reminiscent, but not representative, of Hall’s three-dimensional works. Despite the obvious correlation between these works on paper and Hall’s sculptures the drawings stand alone as independent and uniquely expressive. Exploiting the characteristics of charcoal or pastel the drawings have a textural quality not seen in his precise and finely worked sculptures.
Nigel Hall had his first one-man exhibition in Paris in 1967 and since then has exhibited extensively worldwide. This is the first retrospective of his drawings seen in England and is the eighth solo show at Annely Juda Fine Art whom he joined in 1978. Examples of his work are held in numerous public collections including the Tate Gallery, Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris, Museum of Modern Art, New York and Australian National Gallery, Canberra as well as many others in Europe, Asia, Australia and the USA.
