Figure Painting
2016‘Figure Painting’ is a series of oil paintings of the toys from Joe’s childhood. The collection is a love letter to the action figures of the 1970s, 80s & 90s.
The 34 paintings launched as a solo exhibition at The Old Truman Brewery in Brick Lane, London - February 24th - March 5th 2017. Limited Edition prints of selected paintings are available from joesimpson.bigcartel.com.
![Spaceman.jpg](/media/1145/lego-astronaut.jpg?crop=0.030616363233046905,0.058802446445641525,0.065655346785191152,0.32240947735508146&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843030730000000)
![Ghost.jpg](/media/1135/lego-ghost.jpg?crop=0.012353248718450066,0.046416023287178691,0.0525191063580181,0.30779582663033517&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843030810000000)
![Pirate.jpg](/media/1140/lego-pirate.jpg?crop=0.03023820913696754,0.060001160763507394,0.01301126356302579,0.28152935868295864&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031080000000)
![Merlin.jpg](/media/1139/lego-wizard.jpg?crop=0.0097273400299497,0.060483332195126346,0.0648608517153762,0.30588175909402621&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843030970000000)
![piratecrew.jpg](/media/1141/lego-pirate-2.jpg?crop=0.01050420168067227,0.051740916955017306,0.065126050420167961,0.25443802521008396&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031140000000)
![Plane.jpg](/media/1142/lego-pilot.jpg?crop=0.02811386181131104,0.0483954693226971,0.027153025293081758,0.30140585886091437&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031210000000)
![Handy.jpg](/media/1136/lego-mechanic.jpg?crop=0.036607635060639451,0.02316710173595346,0.0446125045938999,0.28720754426357142&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843030900000000)
![Robin hood.jpg](/media/1143/lego-robin-hood.jpg?crop=0.01829747289108927,0.051805941039681933,0.064875415697747324,0.3172012822832232&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031280000000)
![skeleton.jpg](/media/1144/lego-skeleton.jpg?crop=0.035947783796377204,0.055330143589849029,0.048781337626785534,0.25767830284306603&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031360000000)
![sherifflego.jpg](/media/1327/sherriff.jpg?crop=0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.029706216577540103,0,0.2220584893048129&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031450000000)
![LEGO-Tribe.jpg](/media/1328/lego-aztec.jpg?crop=0,0.02686764705882352,0.0000000000000002583791766400,0.22254411764705903&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031520000000)
![Lego Droid.jpg](/media/1329/lego-robot.jpg?crop=0,0.049474933155080211,0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.2022897727272728&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132843031600000000)
"This project started whilst going through my Mum’s attic sorting through my old belongings and on discovering my old toys I got a wave of nostalgia and memories from these little inanimate plastic figures. They were such a big part of my life as a child. When you haven’t seen something for years (they’ve been hidden away in a box, shut away in the attic uncorrupted by later associations) to see them again provokes an involuntary memory and acts as a portal back in time, provoking a moment of appreciation rather than mere recollection. I want these paintings to have that ‘Proustian’ affect on other people."
![han solo and chewy.jpg](/media/1307/han-solo-and-chewy.jpg?crop=0,0,0,0.28823529411764715&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391298870000000)
![darth-vader.jpg](/media/1306/darth-vader.jpg?crop=0,0.016716577540106952,0,0.37034224598930487&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391308020000000)
![yoda.jpg](/media/1313/yoda.jpg?crop=0,0,0,0.1705882352941176&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391318000000000)
![luke-and-leia.jpg](/media/1309/luke-and-leia.jpg?crop=0.0000000000000001291895883200,0,0,0.29529411764705882&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672053360000000)
![stormtrooper.jpg](/media/1311/stormtrooper.jpg?crop=0,0.024588235294117647,0,0.48364705882352937&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391316460000000)
![boba fett.jpg](/media/1305/boba-fett.jpg?crop=0,0.020346320346320345,0,0.48229918229918228&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391315310000000)
![admiral-ackbar.jpg](/media/1304/admiral-ackbar.jpg?crop=0,0.018181818181818181,0,0.48181818181818181&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672047960000000)
![luke skywalker and wampa.jpg](/media/1308/luke-skywalker-and-wampa.jpg?crop=0,0,0,0.16941176470588232&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672048430000000)
![r2 and c3po.jpg](/media/1310/r2-and-c3po.jpg?crop=0,0.032459893048128338,0,0.25342245989304818&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132391312820000000)
![wicket.jpg](/media/1312/wicket.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672049680000000)
![websiteposter.jpg](/media/1464/websiteposter.jpg?crop=0,0.1483728520687338,0,0.14201785542862636&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131276631490000000)
![websiteposter2.jpg](/media/1465/websiteposter2.jpg?crop=0,0,0,0.29263157894736841&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131276631050000000)
"I’ve painted each portrait on a natural linen canvas, to give them a timeless feel that is removed from context. I’ve tried to paint them in a way that describes the tactile surface of each figure, the texture, the touch – even the taste. Which sounds a little odd, but I think most kids chewed on their toys at some point, and taste is such a strong evoker of nostalgia due to the initial processing of these stimuli passing through the emotional seat of the brain. For example, painting the He-Man figure, I tried to make the head look squishy and chewy compared to the rigid plastic of his torso.”
![BATMAN.jpg](/media/1325/batman.jpg?crop=0,0,0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.24500000000000005&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672049990000000)
![jokerandharley.jpg](/media/1326/joker-and-harelyquinn.jpg?crop=0,0.020000000000000004,0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.22500000000000003&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672050230000000)
![Ghostbusters.jpg](/media/1320/ghostbusters.jpg?crop=0.1680619318181818,0,0.34393806818181821,0.02008032128514051&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132861266410000000)
![slimer.jpg](/media/1322/slimer-ghostbusters.jpg?crop=0.29845833333333338,0,0.31487499999999985,0.021097046413501977&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131344889470000000)
![staypuftweb.jpg](/media/1323/marshmallow-man.jpg?crop=0.0000000000000005167583532801,0.0011764705882358181,0,0&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131344889350000000)
![he-manwebsite.jpg](/media/1452/he-manwebsite.jpg?crop=0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.038277511961722487,0,0.11961722488038277&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131769839250000000)
![trex-web.jpg](/media/1324/t-rex.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672052750000000)
![LionO.jpg](/media/1457/liono-thundercats.jpg?crop=0,0.11682244318181817,0.0000000000000001291895883200,0.26317755681818189&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131344889090000000)
![optimusweb.jpg](/media/1454/transformer-optimus-prime.jpg?crop=0.0000000000000001291895883200,0,0,0.16748285994123424&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131344889220000000)
![bumblebee.jpg](/media/1455/transformer-bumble-bee.jpg?crop=0,0,0,0.17789473684210524&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672051590000000)
![JAZZ.jpg](/media/1456/transformer-jazz.jpg?crop=0,0.057670454545454546,0,0.14232954545454546&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=132672051940000000)
![teenage-mutant-ninja-turtlesweb.jpg](/media/1459/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles.jpg?crop=0.16545454545454547,0,0.43454545454545457,0&cropmode=percentage&width=220&height=220&rnd=131241131270000000)
"There’s a quote that I like by Roger Fry from ‘An Essay in Aesthetics’ first published in 1909, he says - ‘it is only when an object exists in our lives for no other purpose than to be seen that we really look at it’. I believe that’s true for representational painting, I’m trying to elevate these figures into something to be looked at, dwelled on and considered."
Videos
![figureexbo3.jpg](/media/1473/figureexbo3.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591570000000)
![figureexbo.jpg](/media/1471/figureexbo.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591450000000)
![figureexbo2.jpg](/media/1472/figureexbo2.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591520000000)
![IMG_0162.jpg](/media/1474/img_0162.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591600000000)
![IMG_0175.jpg](/media/1476/img_0175.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591690000000)
![66.jpg](/media/1468/66.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591250000000)
![IMG_0172.jpg](/media/1475/img_0172.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591660000000)
![IMG_0204.jpg](/media/1477/img_0204.jpg?anchor=center&mode=crop&width=220&height=220&rnd=131352591710000000)