exhibitions & events 2019

Alistair Gow

turn around, turn around, turn around, 

"When I make an etching, I usually go through three stages. Firstly, I begin with an image or an idea, sometimes this happens quickly but more often pictures float around my head for weeks and months. Second is getting involved in the craft of making plates. Etching is a very physical process (through hands and chemistry) that has an incredible wealth of mark making. Lastly once the plates are made comes the printing. It is at this point that for me the idea and the craft come together as you proof and adjust your print. Printing using colour inks is a magical process and colour has always been important to the work I make. Colour is transformative and can make or break an image.

The idea, the making and the printing involved in each print are equally important."

Alistair Gow is a Glasgow based artist working primarily with printmaking. His images come from a fascination with things that present potential: blank spaces, billboards, roads, and pictures hanging on walls are recurring motifs. The practice of printmaking, in particular the process, craft, and community of a workshop, is essential to how he thinks about and makes art. 

Gow graduated with a BA(hons) in Painting and Printmaking in 2010. Since 2014 he has worked for the Glasgow Print Studio, specialising in intaglio and relief printing, working as collaborating printmaker with artists to create editions of prints, teaching classes and supporting the Studio’s membership.

Image: Alistair Gow, 'Full Circle', photopolymer and 'RD Chair', etching.