"My paintings pay tribute to a cast of historical female figures. Modernist performers, futurist actresses and non-conformist poets become protagonists connected by their unconventional beliefs and preferences. The paintings recognize the allure of these individuals and the extent to which they have stimulated me to make images that illuminate their specific histories, posing questions such as what it is to be present, to be active, to have a voice, and to assume ultimately, some measure of control over creative and emotional labour. The narratives within the paintings are given structure by the visceral sensation of light, outline and intensity of surfaces that evoke images surrounding the various subjects of my investigation. Recently the focus of my pictorial research is the writings of Marguerite Duras. The images do not dwell on Duras narrative but attempt to capture the writer’s strange ability to show how one space and time can dissolve into another through the form of an elliptical poem. Duras compelling cinematic descriptions provide a painterly alchemy for overlaying figural images and condensing time."
Kaye Donachie was born in Glasgow, and currently lives and works in London. Studied at the Royal College of Art and the Hochschule der Künste, Berlin.
Represented by Maureen Paley, and recent solo exhibitions include:
2015 Behind her eyelids she sees something, Ribot Gallery, Milan,
Dearest…,The Fireplace Project, East Hampton, USA, both 2015, and
Maureen Paley, London, (2013 and 2010).
Two person and group exhibitions include:
Mademoiselle Albertine est partie !, Kaye Donachie & Guy Yanai, Appartement, Paris (2016), Oil on Canvas, Yuko Tsuruno Gallery, Tokyo and
(un mural, des tableaux), Frac Île‑de‑France Le Plateau, Paris (2015),
Portraits of Solitude, Hernan Bas & Kaye Donachie, De la Cruz Collection Project Space, Miami, Florida (2014), Meshes of the Afternoon, Sean Kelly Gallery, New York,
A general history of labyrinths, galerie crèvecœur, Paris and
Birds, Beasts and Flowers, Galerie Zink, Berlin (2013).