A solo exhibition of works on paper by William N. Copley (1919–1996) is now on view from May 5 through June 18, 2022, in the Bury Street location of Sadies Coles HQ, London.

Comprising drawings primarily dating from the 1980s and early ’90s, along with a seminal painting from 1965, Philosophie dans le boudoir, the show delivers a concise view of Copley’s drawing practice, which strongly influenced his paintings and which would reach its zenith in the early 1990s. Of special focus are a group of works incorporating lace collage and the recurring motif of an inset image, or a ‘picture within a picture’, themes of which echo throughout Copley’s oeuvre.

From the gallery’s press release:

While Copley’s paintings draw voraciously upon artistic and pop-cultural sources, his drawings were the direct products of his imagination, expressions of what he called his “private mythology”. The works in the exhibition attest to the fact that drawing was a vital testing ground, throughout his career, for the generation of ideas. Writing to the collector Arturo Schwarz in 1965, Copley stated: “These extended periods of drawing seem to help me more than anything.”

For the full text of the gallery press release, and exhibition views, please visit the Sadie Coles website at this link.