b.1939
Patrick Hughes
Patrick Hughes’s paintings and wall reliefs wittily address art history and the nature of perception and perspective. He invented an optical illusion called “reverspective,” a neologism for reverse perspective. Hughes begins by constructing pyramid- or wedge-shaped blocks out of wood, which he combines into ridged panoramas. He then paints scenes into the blocks, depicting interior spaces—including museum galleries hung with iconic artworks—as well as landscapes and city views. The protruding parts of the works appear to recede, and the receding parts appear to protrude. As viewers walk by the pieces, the compositions seem to move. Hughes once remarked: “In my reverspective, you have a contradictory and paradoxical experience. I wouldn’t think they’re beautiful. I think . . . they can be awe-inspiring.”
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About the artist
Patrick Hughes (born 20 October 1939) is a British artist working in London. He is the creator of "reverspective", an optical illusion on a three-dimensional surface where the parts of the picture which seem farthest away are actually physically the nearest. Patrick was born in Birmingham, England in October 1939. His first exhibition was in 1961 and his first reverspective, Sticking-out Room, was made in 1964. Hughes' original painted reliefs are concerned with optical and visual illusions, the science of perception and the nature of artistic representation. He has written and collated three books on the visual and verbal rhetoric of the paradox and oxymoron. He has made a hundred editions of screenprints and is making his way towards a hundred editions of multiples.
Early Works
Patrick held his first solo show in 1961 at the Portal Gallery, London. It was the first one-man show by a Pop Artist, though they were not even called that then. A few years later, Hughes made two seminal reverse perspective works, Infinity and Sticking-out Room. In the 1970s Hughes’ name became synonymous with rainbow paintings, which also became very popular as prints and as postcards; people enjoyed them as decoration, but for Hughes the rainbow represented a solid experience.
Reverspective
Patrick painted his first reverspective in 1964 returning to the idea in the late 1980s. They are painted in oil on board constructed with two, three or four projecting ends. Forced and reverse perspective are used to create the illusion of movement. Paintings are completed with Patrick's signature blue skies.
Hughes’ painted reliefs constantly baffle his audience, demonstrating how deceptive appearances can be. As we walk towards the seemingly flat paintings they loom out at us, creating a disorientating, ‘moving’ experience. The preconceived assumptions of eye and brain are challenged, inevitably raising important questions about our perception and the subconscious.
His witty illusions are not meant to confuse us (although they do), but aim to clarify our relation to reality. Instead of describing paradox, we can now experience it interactively; for his work is more to do with us, the way we think and the way we perceive. Hughes’ work is included in major public collections such as Tate, Victoria & Albert Museum and the British Council.
Prints and Multiples
Patrick Hughes' Reverspective works are also available as Multiples. The constituent parts of the print - main theme, bottom plane and sky or ceiling - are painted in oil separately on flat paper. The finished painting is duplicated digitally, hand-assembled on board constructions and hand-finished. High quality digital prints on archival paper are collaged onto the trapezoidal shapes, the top and bottom, the flat ends and the water reflections are painted by hand; making each collage a unique art work.