LITTLE BOY IN A BIG ARMCHAIR (AFTER CASSATT)
3.4 x 3.2m
Negative etching on galvanised steel and perspex formerly window boarding from vacated houses primed for demolition in the Hilltown.


The title and composition are an adaptation of Impressionist painter Mary Cassatt's 'Little Girl in a Blue Armchair' from 1878. Her domestic scene of a sprawled out little girl in a living room free from the watchful eye of grown-ups, is said to depict the naturalism of childhood. The child's pose was contradictory to the era's painting tradition of depicting charming little girls in 'proper' poses clutching faithful dogs and was rejected by the American art establishment perhaps because of this.
Little Boy in a Big Armchair displays imagery inspired and sourced from workshop, Camouflage, involving children from Our Lady's Primary School in the Hilltown. The portrayal of local lad Liam, slouched confidently, displays nothing uncommon by today's norms. However, hooded along with the small gang behind him and Rottweiler puppy, our perceptions of his 'nature' may waver with uncertainty due to assumptions pinned on children 'marked' with the brandings of antisocial behaviour. The work changes in intensity and clarity with the position and brightness of the sun.

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