Compass 2 : Contemporary painting from London

The starting point for this exhibition was the British revival of the figurative painting, exemplified by Francis Bacon. Compass II attempted to grasp the British art scene, compare it to for example the art scenes in Paris and New York. One of the conclusions was that the British artists were indeed located in between Paris and New York. They worked a bit more separated from the tradition than their Parisian collegues, although British painters were not so much separated from the European traditions as the painters in New York were. When comparing the four Compass-exhibitions, we see literally a movement further and further away from these European traditions in painting (centered in Paris), geographically as well as stylistically. A movement away towards London and New York, ending at the American East Coast. Although Bacon's figurative paintings formed the starting point for this exploration and characterization of British painters, many of the exhibited works could be considered as more or less abstract: Hockney, Davis (Janna E. Adriaanse, 2015)