Highly Commended: Note to Self

Highly Commended

Tom McLean

Note to Self, 2020

Oil on aluminium

Note to Self is a self-portrait of the artist made in his Galway-based studio, a sanctuary where he spent the entirety of the Covid-19 pandemic. His largest and most ambitious painting to date in terms of composition and content, Tom sought to push himself in terms of scale and to test his technical ability. Tom wanted to convey a sense of his personality, which is also a reflection of the space he works in – chaotic and cluttered, but with some underlying sense of order. The composition itself is busy, but thoughtful. Each colour has been considered so the painting has a certain harmony overall.

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