Conor Murgatroyd’s Relation

Lovište Landscape
2021
100 x 120 cm
Enamel on canvas

Conor Murgatroyd celebrates daily pleasures – going to the shop, encountering strangers and their Rottweilers – with a reverent touch. With an attentive eye, Murgatroyd paints his local world, objects and scenes that pass through his realm of experience in Peckham, South London. With his latest show “Relation,” Murgatroyd knowingly contributes to the historic preservation and documentation of his place-time. Despite capturing his community throughout the flurry of UK lockdowns, Murgatroyd imbues his reportage with tangible undercurrents of hope and gratitude. Looking at his paintings you sense the kindness of strangers and their dogs, the impossibility of flowers, the importance of simple tasks that keep time. Murgatroyd is a collector of sorts, putting objects together in kitschy, off-kilter still lifes that make links between his past and present and interact to create sweet, comedic compositions. The lifetime of each decorative plate, vase and boiled egg is keenly felt in his bright enamel palette.  Conor Murgatroyd’s exhibition can be seen at Lychee One’s online viewing room. – Molly Cranston

Installation view from Lychee One

Cherries
2021
60 x 80 cm
Enamel on canvas

Still life
2021
51 x 41cm
Humbrol Enamel on canvas

Nana Looks In
2021
29 x 41cm
Humbrol Enamel on canvas

Having a Butchers
2021
100 x 70cm
Humbrol Enamel on canvas

Stuffed Peppers & Polenta
2021
60 x 80 cm
Enamel on canvas