Alan Uglow the New York based British Artist widely known for subtle paintings composed of monochrome rectangular fields edged and bisected by stripes of contrasting colours has died age 69.
Born in Luton on 19 July, 1941 and graduating the Central School of Art in London in 1962. He moved to New York in 1969. When he began to paint around 1965 he was mainly interested in the boundaries of the painting. It was in fact Giacometti’s setting of figures within space that made Uglow realise that with reduction he could obtain a certain kind of presence. At the same time Robert Ryman developed his highly reduced white paintings, often just showing the traces from masking tape at the edges and corners.Uglow’s geometrical approach is minimal but also has a highly individual twist.
One major influence for his work comes from his lifelong fascination with football. It led to sculptures and photographs related to the spatial structure of the stadium, like his constructions “Sudcurve” (1993) or “Coach’s Bench” (1997/98). On a few occasions this type of work has been exhibited together with a roaring soundtrack recorded in the stands of a crowded football stadium. But there are also clear links between the beautiful game and his paintings, for example in the stripes of his 1992 work “Stadium II” that evoke the white marking lines on the football field. In 1978 he made his solo debut in simultaneous shows at the galleries of Mary Boone (paintings) and Susan Caldwell (drawings) on West Broadway in SoHo.
He had nine subsequent solo shows in New York, most recently at the Stark Gallery in 2002. He died from complications of lung cancer
Photo: Courtesy David Zwirner