Graham Crowley

Born in Romford, England, in 1950, Graham Crowley attended the St. Martin's School of Art from 1968 to 1972 and the Royal College of Art, London, from 1972 to 1975. He was an artist-in-residence at Oxford University in 1982-83 and was a visiting tutor at the Royal College of Art. Crowley's work has been shown extensively in England and Europe, including exhibitions at the Venice and Paris biennials, at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, and at the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, and is included in a number of public collections. He has also completed several large-scale public commissions. Crowley worked originally as an abstract painter but began to paint figuratively in the 1970s. He has been influenced by cartoons and comics, particularly the work of Walt Disney. His works—exaggerated images of ordinary objects—suggest a child’s view of the world, in which household items are imbued with the potential to come alive. This perception is enhanced by the disproportionate scale of Crowley's objects and his often skewed perspective.

*Excerpted from Tools as Art: The Hechinger Collection, published by Harry N. Abrams Inc.