Press release:

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‘Utopia Banished’ by Jon Canty

Coburg House  - March 2020

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‘Utopia Banished’ is an exhibition of work based on the concept of dystopia in the context of war and the threat of nuclear apocalypse. The disturbing but intriguing images explore the human condition amid the trauma of war and the enduring spirit of resistance in the face of aggression.

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Jon Canty is a versatile and dynamic British Visual Artist based in Edinburgh. His creative practice focuses on narrative based work exploring themes including dystopia and urban decay. His repertoire includes figurative work and architectural townscapes through to total abstraction and his chosen mediums are oil or acrylic on canvas or other surfaces. 

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Born in Ascot in 1978, Jon grew up in Bedfordshire and after studying Civil Engineering at Nottingham University, pursued a career in Town Planning based mainly in London. Jon began studies in art at Hampstead School of Art in London in 2013 and around this time he began to develop his work beyond that which he had previously undertaken as a self-taught artist. Jon moved to Edinburgh in 2016 to pursue further studies in art and he undertook at Art Foundation Course at Edinburgh College in 2016/2017 before going on to study Painting at Leith School of Art from 2017 to 2019.

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‘Utopia Banished’ showcases work produced in 2018/2019 during studies at the Leith School of Art where Jon’s work took a themed approach with an over-arching project that focussed on work around the narrative of dystopia. 

Jon has participated in group shows in Edinburgh and across the UK. He has had several solo exhibitions, most notably at the Studio Flamingosaurus Rex Gallery in Edinburgh in 2016. He has work in private collections in the UK, Germany, the USA and Australia.

 

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joncanty.co.uk

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coburghouse.co.uk​

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