Patrick Hughes Abstract Paintings

Patrick Hughes b. 1939 British Dice and Dollars Signed, dated "Dice and Dollars / Patrick Hughes / 2023" Oil on board construction Created by leading British contemporary artist Patrick Hughes, Dice and Dollars displays a three-dimensional interior scene reflecting on the vibrant culture of New Orleans. Part painting, part sculpture and part optical illusion, this work by the London-based artist immerses the viewer in a fragmented room with an open window, revealing one of the Crescent City's most iconic homes. Hughes' experimentations with perspective and perception involve the viewer in a highly tangible way that is rarely seen in fine art. Driven by ideas of originality and engagement, Hughes is among the leading figures in contemporary British art. In Dice and Dollars , Hughes draws inspiration from one of America’s most alluring cities. In this composition of the Louisiana city known for the birth of jazz, the music of New Orleans takes center stage with a poster of Louis Armstrong on the left wall and a rendition of Fernando Botero’s famous painting, La Cantante to the right. The singing woman is framed by an upper-room view of the familiar orange and fern-clad LaBranche building on Royal...

Patrick Hughes b. 1939 British Love, Love, Love Signed, dated "Love, Love, Love / Patrick Hughes / 2020" Oil on board construction A testament to the artist’s knowledge of contemporary art, Love, Love, Love displays a three-dimensional, illusionistic scene for which Patrick Hughes’s oeuvre has become renowned. Part painting, part sculpture and part optical illusion, this work by the London-based artist invites the viewer to examine Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE sculpture as it is unboxed from a crate. The three-dimensional construction breaks free from the wall and appears to shift as the viewer moves in front of it. The artist’s experimentations with perspective and perception involve the viewer in a highly tangible way that is rarely seen in fine art. Driven by ideas of engagement, originality and humor, Hughes is one of the leading figures in contemporary British art. Placed in a somewhat surreal setting, Love, Love, Love depicts the monumental red, blue and green sculpture on a patch of green grass. The wooden crate which encases the famed sculpture stands stark against the vivid blue sky and billowing clouds. Hughes generates an illusionistic perspective in this construction that immerses the viewer in a dreamlike environment, where this trademark of Philadelphia’s Center City is placed in a new environment outside of time and place. In an interview, Hughes commented on the piece: “I enjoy borrowing recognizable imagery from artists such as Robert Indiana’s LOVE [...] and inserting it into my reverspectives. I see this as a satirical venture, that enhances audience engagement through their sighting of recognizable images and symbols in my works.” For Hughes to feel his art is complete, it needs the physical presence of the spectator, engaging the body as well as the eye and mind. The use of the psychological relationship between reality and representation destabilizes both the viewer and the image being viewed. Hughes aims for this immersive experience, with the goal of taking his viewers somewhere they have never been before, though elements, such as famous architecture, walls, library settings and landscapes seem familiar. Hughes coined the term reverspective for these types of constructions, which he describes as “perspective in reverse.” He utilizes the traditional idea of linear perspective in which an artist can create the illusion of receding space and dimensionality with converging lines upon a single point on the horizon line. However, he reverses this concept by bringing these lines forward into space using three-dimensional planes while still abiding by a strict vanishing point. Hughes says, “When the principles of perspective are reversed, the mind is deceived into believing that a static painting can move of its own accord.” Born in 1939, Patrick Hughes completed formal training at the Leeds College of Art before beginning his artistic career. He developed his first reverspective work in 1964 for the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. Entitled Sticking-Out Room, Hughes’ hypnotic vision of an interior room seemed to recede in space, marking the beginning of the artist’s long...

Patrick Hughes b. 1939 British Himalayan Hues Oil on board construction Another success from the artist, Himalayan Hues displays a three-dimensional, illusionistic scene for whic...

Patrick Hughes b. 1939 British Dog in a Manger Oil on panel Patrick Hughes' original works are a feast for the eyes and also offer critical insights into the artist's unique poin...