In Gallery II, Goldfinch is excited to present Grace Mattingly: Sundown, a solo exhibition of new paintings from London-based artist Grace Mattingly. Sundown marks Mattingly’s first solo exhibition at Goldfinch.
In this body of paintings, Mattingly embraces a stripped-down version of the femme-coded fantasy land that preoccupies her previous large-scale work. These bite-sized vignettes transform Mattingly’s go-to symbols—apples, shoes, and snakes—into starring characters in the Dionysian narrative of her work.
Blending elements of Rococo hedonism, 19th-century Japanese erotica, and late ’90s pop culture like Sailor Moon and Fantasia (2000), Mattingly invites viewers into an “imaginary universe” where libidinal female desires electrify the surrounding landscape. “The colors are saturated and often warm-hued, the brush marks are big and energetic, and the feelings are exuberant, mysterious, and a little dangerous,” says Mattingly, who sees her “unabashedly feminine” work as both an invitation and a dare. Candy colors and erotic undertones seduce viewers into deeper conversations about the nature of female desire and its connection to the female gaze. In Mattingly’s work, these hidden female desires manifest as pink pumps, cowboy boots, and the biblical apple of knowledge (with a big bite missing, of course). Here, the female gaze opens a window into fun, fantasy, and self-acceptance.
Regarding female desire as radically creative, Mattingly emphasizes the carnal energy surging through her work. “At their core, all of the works in Sundown emanate a heat or intensity, an urgency that is erotic,” she says. “However, this sensuality is raw, shame-free, and undomesticated. It is the sensuality of the act of creating, containing all of the pleasure and mystery of that practice.”
Grace Mattingly: Sundown runs September 15 through October 26, 2024. The exhibition’s opening reception takes place on Sunday September 15, 2-5pm. Related public programs: Grace Mattingly will be present at the exhibition’s opening reception and will lead a gallery walk-through of her exhibition at 1:30pm, prior to the start of the opening reception.
All events are free and open to the public.
Artist's Bio:
Grace Mattingly (b. 1991, Chicago) is a London-based artist whose work has been shown internationally in solo and group exhibitions.
Solo exhibitions include Untitled Miami, Huxley Parlour Gallery (Miami, US, 2022); Yellow Horses, Taymour Grahne (London, UK, 2022); and Secret Sunshines (Arusha Gallery, Edinburgh, UK, 2021).
Group exhibitions include Luminous Terrain, Atipografia, (Arzignano, IT, 2023); New Mythologies II, Huxley Parlour, (London, UK, 2022); Four Painters & A Photographer, Grove Berlin, (Berlin, DE, 2022); Intimacy, Taymour Grahne Projects, (London, UK, 2022); Internal Weather, Sid Motion Gallery, (London, UK, 2022); MAMA, Prior Art Space, (Berlin, DE, 2022); Coming In, Coming Out, Prior Art Space, (Berlin, DE, 2022); Dream On, Grove London, (London, UK, 2021); and A Chorus of Bodies, Liliya Gallery, (London, UK, 2021).
Mattingly has been featured in artist publications such as émergent magazine and Art Maze Mag and is a recipient of the Elizabeth Greenshields grant. She holds a BA in philosophy from Columbia University (2014) and an MA in painting from The Slade School of Fine Art (2021).
Header image: Grace Mattingly, Night Boots, 2024, oil on canvas.
