Igniting Penguins

A glimpse into the art world through the mind of painter Rachel Lumsden

British-born artist Rachel Lumsden creates primarily large-format figurative paintings characterized by intensely atmospheric, pictorial spaces. Her imagery coalesces on the canvas through a virtuoso handling of paint, evoking visual narratives that come unexpectedly close and yet cannot be entirely grasped.

In her book Igniting Penguins, Lumsden invites her readers on an entertaining excursion into the art world and to the core of painting itself. Along the way we are introduced to some of its powerful and quirky gatekeepers, we are baffled by art's apparently unshakeable gender roles, and we discover what makes figurative painting a sexy form of quantum physics. Lumsden's essay is both a personal manifesto and a survey of today's art scene. It offers everything you ever wanted to know about painting and the art world but never dared to ask.

Awarded as one of the most beautiful books in Austria 2023.

• A unique, personal reflection on painting as an artistic expression in the 21st century

• An entertaining excursion into the art world and to the core of painting itself

  Autorentext

  Rachel Lumsden, geboren 1968 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, lebt und arbeitet seit 2002 in der Schweiz. Sie bildete sich an der Nottingham Trent University und den Royal Academy Schools in London künstlerisch aus und unterrichtete 2007-2019 an der Hochschule Luzern - Design & Kunst.