The work in this exhibition was produced by Alison Watt during her time as Associate Artist at the National Gallery.
Born in Greenock in 1965, Watt is a painter who studied at the Glasgow School of Art. In 2000 she had a solo exhibition at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.
The work on show in Phantom demonstrated a deep fascination with the possibilities of the suggestive power of fabric. Alison Watt made a childhood trip to London to visit the National Gallery, which resulted in a lifelong admiration for Ingres’s portrait 'Madame Moitessier', a picture that has been a constant source of inspiration for her.
The Rootstein Hopkins Foundation Associate Artist is appointed for a period of two years, working in the National Gallery studio with the brief of creating new work that relates to the Gallery’s permanent collection. The aim of the scheme is to demonstrate the continuing inspiration of the Old Master tradition on today's artists.
The Associate Artist Scheme is generously supported by the Rootstein Hopkins Foundation.