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November 8, 2007 9:33 am
Simon English’s art has all the scrappy sexuality, charm, and lyricism of the best British art, poetry, and rock ‘n’ roll traditions. Esoteric historical and contemporary pop culture references, erotica, lyrical texts about love, quotes from songs, and pretty doodles are mixed together to produce an intoxicating potpourri of imagery. He collects styles—and executes each of them masterfully. Within a single drawing, his work can seem like the product of a nerdy hormonal schoolboy, an art student scrawling thumbnail figure sketches, and an attentive illustrator working from reality. English’s latest exhibit, “Lullaby for Marie-Strange, Letgo and Rabbit,” opens at Galerie du jour Agnès B. in Paris on November 9.
How do you cull your references and imagery?
Everything starts from the blank page and travels to a place of recognition. There are no pre-existing images or texts to kickstart the dialogue; it’s a case of “I’ll know when I get there.” I use the process of drawing itself as an engine of recovery, a system in which to coax memory and the imagination to the surface.
Your work is often so romantic. Do you think of yourself as a real softie?
I must be—I cry at the end of “The Railway Children.”
What is the first thing you loved passionately?
Drawing and a dog called Sophie. As a child, I used to eat sketchbooks for breakfast. I never really watched television in the evening—I just used to sit there and draw my way into anywhere I wanted to go.
Your work has a charmingly anachronistic allure. What era most inspires you?
I wrote on a drawing quite recently, entitled “Letgo,” that “I was a Victorian and liked repressed sexuality.” In drawing, I’m quite a time traveler, moving between past, present, and future lives. I’d have to say, though, that the era that most inspires me is now.
Well, “now” must be a real thrill, considering you have this show with Agnès B. How did you link up with her?
I first met Agnès ten years ago as a collector of my work. She’s always been an extremely supportive friend and generous patron. In 2004, I made a drawing installation at the Agnès B. press HQ to coincide with Paris fashion week. The next year, she helped produce my book, “Simon English and the Army Pink Snowman,” for Black Dog Publishing, and we set the idea of this show in motion. I had no idea at the time that 2007 was going to be the year of love in Paris for me—my new partner is French—and that I would become Eurostar’s most frequent customer.
Do you think Parisians will react differently to your art than Londoners?
It’s impossible to predict how those who see the show in Paris will react. I am very much the new boy and I hope they will forgive my appalling attempts at trying to grasp the language and the culture. As I’m spending more and more time here in Paris, the visual diary, as it were, is expanding to incorporate a curious set of cross references. It’s all getting mixed up, and it’s as if the twin-towning committee don’t know who is French or English anymore.
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