Victoria by Tim Garner

Victoria by Tim Garner
Victoria by Tim Garner

Muted tones of greys and browns lie under a playful, yet subdued sky. An earlier piece by Tim Garner, we are placed above Victoria Station, one of Manchester’s mainline railway destinations on the north side of the city. Tracks sweep across the composition like rivers of steel, turning at an angle into the body of the waiting city below.

Where the contemporary and industrial collide, 'Victoria' by Tim Garner presents to us a vast cityscape beneath playful, Van Gogh-esque swirling skies. Here we are placed above the hustle and bustle of Victoria Station, which is one of Manchester’s mainline railway destinations on the north side of the city. Tracks sweep across the composition like rivers of steel, turning at an angle into the body of the waiting city below. The organic flow of the sky juxtaposes to the red brick and shiny new builds below, achieving a compositional balance that immediately pleases the eye. Garner's works are imbued with narrative and movement; they tell us a story of a city in motion. Those familiar with Manchester will be aware of the city's contrasts, and how quickly it can change – Garner’s paintings bring this to a standstill, showing the city at a specific moment in time. Since this piece was painted, this view will inevitably already have changed and transformed. “I’m not really an intellectual painter, it’s much more intuitive” Garner is known for exploring various visual languages and devices within his work, but without being too formulaic. His works have a distinctive way of appropriating the physicality of a city. To Garner, painting is an extension of what's around him, both physical and metaphysical; it is vital that his works reflect this. Through a formula of of industrial materials such as metals and cement, Garner is able to emulate this physicality, paired with a colour palette of metallics and iridescent paints to imbue texture, light and depth. Garner places us viscerally within a setting, making us feel as though we would get a residue on our fingers if we were to touch the gritty concrete. Through this process, Garner's rich compositions capture these still moments in time; they're snapshots of the mundane, anti-landmarks of a city, expanded to large scale compositions which demand our time and attention - any piece from Garner's collection would be a valuable investment for a contemporary art collection, exhibition, business space or home.

Based in his home studio in Stockport, Tim Garner is an artist who captures cityscapes through his own avant-garde lens. Inspired from his time living between Manchester and Paris, Garner works from photography and photo collage as his primary references, taking advantage of their visual immediacy and accuracy. Paint and cement are then used as a way of injecting emotive layers of meaning, forming Garner's distinctive style and flair. Through this process Garner has established his own visual language, which is imbued with character. His works are comfortingly familiar to a Northern audience, whilst enlightening and educating wider audiences. A piece of Mancunian history, this artwork would be a valuable asset for any contemporary art space, collection or home.