France-Lise McGurn’s paintings have a dreamy quality, the tones and figures are imbued with a feeling of intimacy and fluidity. The people that appear are anonymous, they are not meant to be specific people but rather give the presence of others to convey the same experience of when you are in a room filled with people like being at a crowd in a club. Through McGurn’s practice of working quickly in simple strokes she brings an immediacy to her work and creates an emotional connection with the audience. The lack of detail in terms of clothing make the figures timeless.
Renowned for her wall paintings such as the one in Tate St Ives, McGurn’s practice has expanded in recent years to working with neon or creating sculptural works. While expanding her artistic language, she is also exploring what it is for her to be contained on a canvas. Wrong Beat and Baby (2021) is a shift in McGurn’s practice and relationship with the canvas. Additionally, the work also represents a shift in her life in becoming a mother. The ‘wrong beat’ references the different rhythm of night McGurn now has, rather than the rhythm of the nightclub that has so influenced her life and work. A baby can be seen within the womb of one of the figures in the painting.
As McGurn was born and raised in Glasgow,the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA), Glasgow believed it was essential to acquire a work by the local artist. The painting is a reflection on motherhood, shifts in working practice and life that a female artist needs to contend with, a focus within the museum’s existing collection and programmes. The work continues Glasgow Museums drive for more equal representation within the holdings of the collection celebrating the influence of women artists on the visual arts scene in the city.
